Shirogane's guide to world salvation
by Obento box
Summary: Chapter 6 updated, I'm deleting and uploading the rewritten story chapter by chapter, don't be confused. -the story is really bad, gonna try and make it less bad. I think I'm cutting myself too much with the amount of edge present. That means a rewrite, actually will try my best to fix terribleness.
1. Ch1: Won't you please take me home

**S******** T*******

 **Day** Month** Year******

 **Original Hive, 3,870 meters below ground**

Shirogane sluggishly opened his eyes as he surveyed the cockpit of his silver Type-00. Shaking away the nauseating headache born from the intense G-Force of his extreme acrobatic, he hastily checked through multiple system statuses and looked for any malfunctions.

"—Valkyrie-1 to all units… data-link is currently down. Report the condition of your TSF." Somewhere close by, he noticed Isumi's fighter rising out of the hideous scene. Being the leader of the Valkyries, she strived show composure and control under any and all circumstances, as horrendous as they came.

"—This is Valkyrie-4. System's all good. I was pretty far from that bastard." Kazama's ragged voice could be heard over the comms, even if her presence was outside of Shirogane's cone of vision.

"—Valkyrie-12 here. I lost my right main arm and rifle, the machine is functional otherwise." Another report came in from Ayamine, sounding as stoic as ever.

"—T-this is Valkyrie-9. Eh- my system is also fine, didn't take much damage from that." Tama's Takemikazuchi bore many scratches and scars on its outside armour from their previous clashes. Shirogane saw her fearful expression from the camera, the drained pilot squeezed out a wearily smile when her eyes connected with his.

"—This is Valkyrie-3. Jump unit's completely busted. Don't think I can get more than ten meters off the ground." Next, he noticed Munakata's pitiful TSF and started to pace her way, wanting to lend her a hand, but the First Lieutenant anchored her stance by leaning on a melee halberd.

"—Valkyrie-10 here. My system is fine, seeing no problems so far, everything is functioning above seventy-six percent." Remembering he was the first to recover, Shirogane also reported his machine's quality.

"—Emm… Valkyrie-8. The left main arm got destroyed along with the supplemental armour and rifle when the carrier came through that wall. I'm still operational though." Mikoto was able to dig her way out of the rubble, the cause of her burial was the hive boulders which broke down minutes prior.

"—This is Valkyrie-7. All systems all functioning normally, no external damage detected." As seen from her feed, Chizuru rubbed the left side of her head in an attempt to ease the pain from bumping around in the cockpit block.

"—Valkyrie-6. My TSF is a bit roughed up but no major malfunction yet." Next, Kashiwagi's parched voice emitted onto their channel. She kneeled down in search of her rifle, finding it wedged in-between the rocks.

"—A-04 reporting in. no damage taken, Rutherford Field is operating at eighty-two percent. The engine is functioning… we can continue at any time." Apprehending her inexpressive statement, Shirogane was perhaps the only one who understood the weight shouldered by XG-70's red-haired engine.

Having to power the behemoth that was the Susanoo IV proved to be no easy task, even for a supercomputer. Unlike Shirogane's first run with the XG. This time, its Rutherford Field was up and running at the cost of all close to medium ranged weapons. Only four missile launchers were still operational.

Shirogane cleansed his mind of all irrelevance for the time being. Out of the eleven TSFs nearby, six had taken minimal damage, two were missing their main arms and a single unit was immobilized by the aforementioned attack. They could, and they must continue the mission, that was his conclusion.

But they came with a greater number, there laid another unavoidable fact.

"Valkyrie-2, Valkyrie-11, report back." Isumi's request was met with absolute silence. She spoke no more once her fear had been confirmed.

Shirogane was the closest to the two destroyed TSFs, namely the two units that belonged to Meiya and Hayase. He struggled to stiffly trot his way over to the remains of their units as he felt complicated emotion shifting between disappointment and grief.

"…No good, Captain… two K.I.A…"

"I see…"

Shirogane hesitated to slam his fist on the aluminum sheets surrounding his controls, his teammates were dead; again, for the countless time. As for his reaction, the sorrowful sadness persisted, the surplus misery kept looming over him. But it was all a part of his venture, wanting to cry for the dead wouldn't do any good.

Meiya's purple Takemikazuchi had been crushed down to a mere one-third of its original size. He averted his eyes from some red reflections of liquid leaking out under the machine, a mixture of blood and oil was his best assumption if one must be made. A couple of electrical sparkles still flickered on, unlike the light of her stifled life.

Hayase's Type-00 was in a similar state. The right side of the mech had been violently sheared away when she was plunged against the Hive wall. Shirogane again avoided looking closely, as after a few glances he could clearly spot some parts of Hayase's deformed body.

Nowhere in their plan contained a surprise attack from the BETA's new species, losing two of their most talented Eishis and leaving the entire team in an unpleasant state of disarray. Shirogane thought back, to when the first mistake was made.

—

Special Task Force A-01 was making their way to the first barrier when an unidentified BETA signal was detected directly to their left. Confusion was shared between the Valkyries members, as no one understood how the BETA could be somewhere inside solid walls.

However, ahead of any order Isumi could imagine on the spot, ahead of any impulse Hayase could instinctively perform. The tunnel was viciously rammed apart by a strain of BETA A-01 never encountered before, the Carrier-class. That monstrosity spared no time waiting for the Valkyries' response, instead, it continued to obliterate anything in its path as the alien broke through the other side of the Hall.

Giant broken pieces of earth were sent flying towards the Storm Vanguards. In a period shorter than a fraction of a second, the debris shot across the passageway like a bulldozer with the speed of a rocket.

Pure luck was on Shirogane's side as he avoided all of the big shards that could have easily turned his frame into a hulk projectile with zero effort. Meiya however, unfortunately caught many huge scraps with her TSF. Which in turn, did fire her off against the opposite side just as physics dictated.

As for the final victim, Hayase was crushed without mercy by the carrier itself. The left side of her fighter was stuck on the alien's ragged plate-like-skin and that took her life when the BETA broke through the other wall, crashing her front against an immoveable surface.

Instantly, two of Shirogane's closest comrades were killed. All of his endeavors up to that point in life was rendered foolishly pointless once more.

—

The rest of the Valkyries were left alone in shock when they noticed that Shirogane didn't even try to help his very dead teammates. He emotionless gaze met the dreadful stare of everyone around him, its message was already told in full.

"Meiya-san… Hayase-san…!" Tama's broken voice rang within the ears of her companions as she tried to hold back her tears.

"Mitsurugi…1st Lt. Hayase… god-damn it all!" This time, Kashiwagi could not control herself seeing the fate of her fellow Eishis.

"—We have to continue the mission… Alpha squad, get the barrier open and plant that S-11. Beyond these two doors will be the primary objective. We can leave after the target is destroyed."

Trading glances with Isumi, she offered him a sign of condolence gathered from what composure she could afford to lend. Knowing that if she were to lose her cool now, what was left of A-01's morale would be completely shattered. Therefore, Isumi chose to only function as the leader of the Valkyries and temporarily banished her human self.

Her teeth bit down hard, warm blood was leaking from a fresh rupture on her pink lips.

The BETA, however, being the heartless aliens that they were, gave the Valkyries no time to mourn. Thousands of mindless bodies rushed in from both sides of the newly formed tunnels, dedicated to the task of chewing their invaders into bits for supper.

"—Two divisions of BETA are approaching us from both sides! Total numbers… over thirty thousand!" Mikoto's voice was audible on the comms carrying a fresh sense of fear and panic alongside it.

"Yoroi and Kazama, hurry up and get that barrier open. Bravo squad, set up defensive positions by the left tunnel entrance, A-04 to the right. Once this opens, Alpha squad will take vanguard to the second barrier. Susanoo can pass after the barrier has opened up big enough. Bravo squad will then go once they inject the closing chemical and clear any BETA that get through! Move, people!"

Isumi fervently shouted her command to the rest of the team. Her responsibilities as a Captain leading the UN Squadron were weighing down now heavier than ever. Everyone was more or less obligated to come back from the upset and hurt by suddenly losing two of their brightest members.

"—Roger!" With no other choice, the remaining soldiers began to act out their assigned duty. Trying their best to momentarily forget about their gone friends.

—

"—Those Grappler-class are getting too close on the right! Valkyrie-7! Blow them away with the 120mm!"

"—Copy!"

"—Damn it! There is no end to these bitches!"

The monsters were not designed to show any indication of fear or terror, the corpses of their fallen only served to bring the rest closer to the burnt-out intruders. Minutes passed quickly as the blood-boiling battle continued in favour of the endless BETA army, aliens with infinite numbers steadily closed the distances between them and the A-01 task force.

"—The barrier has completely opened! Kasumi-san, you can move the Susanoo through now!"

"—Bravo squad, fall back behind the Susanoo! Alpha squad, Move up and open the second barrier!" Kasumi flew the giant fortress through the hole, firing her missiles behind the escort units to slow their pursuers.

"Everyone hurry up! We need to get to the other side of this barrier now!"

"Kashiwagi! Watch out for the Fort-class on the left!"

"…Thanks! I got'em, we good! We can go now, the door's closing!" Just as she claimed, the teeth-like panels extended downwards, shutting off the passageway separating the pilots from the BETA.

"All units, full speed to the second barrier. We should be fine behind us now that thing is dead, watch out for their worm-like strain."

—

The dirt beneath shook intensely followed by a rumbling howl of transforming earth, sending the minds of those Eishis who survived into another alarming frenzy. They were tired beyond measure, every last one of them, but the few minutes of intermission was still robbed away by their appalling enemies nonetheless.

"—What was that?! Check for BETA signal in the walls!"

"—Negative, there is nothing h— shit- look! The first Barrier!" Sakaki's words veered the team's attention to a location behind them already travelled.

The Carrier-class announced its eventual return by a thundering smash, busting down the first barrier with pure, brute force. Its serpentine crawl rushed the monster halfway across the Hall before opening its mouth and releasing thousands more of its allies.

"—Fuck, fuck! Bravo squad, engage the incoming targets! Alpha squad, we need that barrier open ASAP!"

"—Roger!" The rest of the Valkyries answered in unison, everybody hurried their respective tasks.

—

"—Empty! I'm empty here! Valkyrie-12 switch on me!"

"—Roger, but I'm low too."

"Here, take my extra mag. Make it count, Ayamine." A Magazine was tossed in the air before getting caught by a mechanical arm.

"T-thanks, 1st Lt. Munakata." Ayamine briefly nodded to her senior.

"—The barrier is seventy percent opened, about a minute left." An update on the progress of Alpha squad was announced by Kazama, she and Yoroi worked zealously to hasten their task as much as possible. With help from the firepower of the XG-70d, the BETA were having a difficult time gaining any ground for the duration.

Untimely, from amidst the BETA army, a few Laser-class emerged out of their transport's open mouth. Against all assumptions, the group of Lux that was supposed to never fire within the hive took its aim and blasted shots of concentrated energy at the Valkyries.

"—Laser-class! Move!" Reacting barely in time, Shirogane grabbed Mikoto's frame by its Mount Pylon and forcefully threw her aside, out of danger's way.

"—T-thank you, Takeru-san! I-I just saw my life fla—" Yoroi froze midway through her sentence when Shirogane's 00 already departed from her.

"—What?! What that a laser-class?! How could they be firing in here?"

"—Did you not see the carrier-class? They are trying to stop us at all cost now!"

"That's crazy! I thought they would never…" Kashiwagi cut herself off when Sakaki's point was realized as she recalled their preceding encounters.

"—Anyone got hit by that shot?!" Isumi cried out over the exploding noise of 36mm shells.

"—We're all good! Just hold them off a bit longer and…" Kazama's sentence trailed off when she observed the chemical injector.

"What's wrong Kazama? Report!"

"The injector! The Laser-class hit it!" Yoroi filled in for Kazama when she was too busy improvising a solution.

"What? That was their target?" Having Laser-class inside the hive itself was ridiculous enough, it was blatantly unfair how they broke expectations one after another.

"Is it still functional?"

"Negative, Captain. The opening chemical is spilled. We have no way of getting this thing to expose any further." Kazama announced the unfavourable news.

"Well, that is a million dollar shot if I ever see one." An extremely out-of-place joke by the Storm Vanguard was only startling to his teammates.

"Shut up, Shirogane! The hole is big enough for the A-04. Just ram it through. Maximize the Rutherford Field and clip away the edges! Alpha squad, forget about the closing chemicals. Set up the charges and let's go!"

Following Isumi's order, Kasumi calmly accelerated the XG-70d, carelessly pushing it through the barrier. The boundaries of the circular entrance were trimmed and melted away by the gravitational distortion that was the Rutherford Field. Although thanks to its departure, the BETA were able to gain ground rapidly after Susanoo IV's fire support left its post.

"Alright, it's through! Everyone follow after!" One by one, the Valkyries put their jump units to good use and leaped over a low barricade.

—

"—Captain…! What about 1st Lt. Munakata? Her jump unit is still no good, remember?" As the clock ticked down and the entire team climbed over the half-extended blockade, Kazama was faced with a realization way too late.

"—…That's right! 1st Lt. Munakata's frame is damaged!" A couple more agreements from the squad called attention to their trapped team member.

"—Tch- Touko… why must you remember? I was sneaking away so well too." For memorizing the perilous condition of her best friend, Kazama received a complaint in the place of gratitude from Munakata.

"Misae! Don't tell me you ar—"

"—Focus! Let's stay focused, 2nd Lt. Kazama! The Primary objective is right ahead." Isumi interrupted Kazama before she could declare Munakata's painstakingly obvious intention.

"Captain! But the First Lieutenant is still back there!" This time it was Tama who spoke up against her leader's actions.

"I talked to Captain about this already! It will be pointless if this door doesn't close! You guys GO! JUST GO!"

"All units full speed forward. We should be reaching the core very soon."

The second time around, no one dared to raise their voice in objection. Knowing that both the Captain and the First Lieutenant had made one of the most difficult decisions in their lives. So many of their comrades perished during the battles with no end in sight, for whatever determination led Munakata to reach her verdict, she was fated to become another sacrifice for the victory of humanity.

—

After what was left of Task Force A-01 made its way into the main chamber, they finally reached the primary target. Unlike Shirogane's experience with the Superior last time, this time the Hivemind did not shoot out its tentacles, instead, it sat there quietly not putting up a fight for its life.

"—Area clear. A-04, start charging the particle cannon now. Everyone else watch out for BETA reinforcements."

"—Copy!"

As the pilots spread out around the XG-70d for its protection, each and every one of them was doubtlessly hoping for an easy end to their prolonged mission after having to witness the death of their beloved teammates. They were so close to the light at the end of the tunnel, it was supposed to be a very bright flash of mankind's ultimate weapon.

Yet once again, luck was not on the side of the invaders as the walls surrounding the main chamber and the second barrier all came crumbling down to reveal another massive BETA force.

"—You're fucking joking… how can this be happening…"

"The BETA just won't give us a break! They are even willing to destroy the reactor room to get us!" Frustration increased hastily amongst the Valkyries when they discovered, for one more time, the BETA would stop at nothing to wipe them out.

"Just shut up and shoot them back!" A quick argument over the channel reminded the crew of their number one priority, shooting aliens until they die.

"All units! Set up defensive positions around A-04! Hold out until the particle cannon is ready to fire. We are sticking to the plan. Once the charging is finished, we will board the Susanoo and can evacuate right away after the primary target is destroyed."

Resolving the confusion caused by unexpected reinforcement aiding their foes, Isumi issued a set of immediate orders for her nervous pilots.

Shirogane took his spot in front of the XG-70d as he started to slay hordes of BETA by pure instinct. He was putting around zero thoughts into his maneuverer, preferring to just massacre groups after groups of BETA relying on his nature instead.

He had already given up on this time-loop and moved on to consider his actions for the next. While the sudden death of his teammates dealt no less shock to him compared to the rest of his squad, Shirogane was able to recover from the astonishment at what could be argued as an inhuman speed. After all, the shock value of a surprise diminishes rapidly second time around.

Under normal circumstances, he would be curious as to why the Superior had yet to perform an attack against the TSF Squadron. However, now all that he wanted was to complete the mission as fast as possible, so he could have a peace of mind prior to committing suicide.

Shirogane's lack of awareness cost him greatly when he wandered too close to BETA's final boss and was unable to avoid a lethal assault from the Hive reactor itself. Unfortunately, he was left with little choice other than to accept the present when he noticed a tentacle from the Primary target had pierced his unit and stabbed him in his stomach.

"Shit! SHIROGANE!" The rest of the superior's appendages rushed him, lifted his damaged Takemikazuchi off the ground and started swinging it widely in the air like a Yo-Yo.

"OWWWO! What the fuck, you homo or something!? Fucking tentacles, REALLY!?" For some arbitrary reason, the immense pain that supposedly accompanied being stabbed in the abdomen was missing for the young failed hero.

Shirogane could hear muffled screams from his teammates who were all occupied dealing with the aliens that were trying to rip them from limb to limb. He would have attempted to sever the arms that connected him and the reactor, but his hands were just a tad bit short of reaching the control sticks.

" _Life form, deny. Existence, acknowledged. Awareness of existence, confirmed. Activity, acknowledged._ " What Shirogane heard wasn't any form of language, it was pure information that was directly transferred to his mind. A type of communication he grew accustomed from practice with his psychic vat friends.

Nonetheless, what he felt there was on a totally different level than seeing images projected by Kasumi. Wholesome data was flooding his brain, most of which he was incapable of identifying or understanding.

" _Higher existence, confirmed. Configuration, undetected. Configuration, beginning._ "

"Ay, ay! Don't do whatever gay shit you're thinking about, octopus head! I'm not into that kinda play—!" Missing by mere inches, Shirogane almost bit off his own tongue from his jaws clamping together due to the overwhelming pain that surged to every part of his body.

His deafening scream echoed within his seat. He was unable to lessen the burden on his body and soul.

" _Takeru-chan! Takeru-chan! You have to stop it from doing what it's doing! All your physical readings are off the charts!_ " It was reassuring that Sumika, who presumably woke up from her slumber only seconds ago could already detect the suffering of the Primary objective's victim. Her thoughts forced its way into the young man, trying to get him to clear his head from the mental invasion.

"No shit- NO FUCKING SHIT! You don't know this but dudes also love being fuckin' penetrated! But not in the belly, OKAY!? Should I bent over for you, GAYLORD!?"

Motivating himself by the means of ridiculing Sumika and the Superior, Shirogane found the strength to angrily pull out the knife strapped under his seat and jab at the fleshed antenna until it broke apart, his each swing was powered by the sheer frustration of having to forfeit all of his accomplishments.

"GAYASS MOTHERFUCKER! You FUCK-HEAD! Goddamn faggot tryin' to fuck me! ARRGGA!" Mustering the last bit of his rage, Shirogane unlogged the head of the tentacle stuck in his belly, but that didn't heal the wound inflicted nor stop the blood leakage.

" _TAKERU-CHAN! You're bleeding really badly! W-we have to stop it…!_ "

"Urrgg… I think this calls for restarting from checkpoint, you know? Really pissing me off. I'll say though… we're pretty close this time… sorry, girls… I'll keep trying, I promise… this's coming from the man who beat Contra on one life… you know I'm good… I got this, believe me…"

" _Configuration, incomplete. Higher existence, rejected._ " The superior reeled in the lone tentacle while sending out a dozen more at the same time.

" _Aha… hahaha… w_ _e will just try again right? I know Takeru-chan will never give up!_ "

" _It is okay, Takeru-san. We still have many chances, all of the chances, in fact._ "

"Just shut up… and get ready to blast me…" Sumika and Kasumi's words of encouragement barely registered for Shirogane as he was seriously losing grasp on his consciousness.

"~Take me down… to the paradise city… where the grass is green and the girls are pretty… ~Oh… won't you please take me home~!" With his last breath, Shirogane hummed softly a classic song.

A few seconds later, the world once again resets itself when Shirogane's TSF and the primary objective was obliterated by the burning light from the XG-70d.

—

 **Muv-Luv Alternative, Shirogane's guide to world salvation**

—

"An old destiny tossed about, in the same insane world—

A smothered flame of life blazing without any path, in another dying world—

Once again, the future that carried no hope, spun to the pleasure of no man"

The old tale of love and courage was long gone, replaced by an alternative story. A tale just as old, a tale of failure and despair. But to lose is to gain, the life that was preserved at the cost of many other, will once again, venture the road of the saviour.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **October 22, 2001**

 **Shirogane resident, second floor**

With eyes that never witnessed a tomorrow, ears that only discerned screams of the dead, mouth that spoke no word of pleasantry, and nose that only smelled the scent of reddish gore.

I lazily lifted my heavy eyelids. Once more, I was back here staring at the same, white ceiling. Once more, I returned to this starting line.

"~Oh… won't you please take me home~!" My vocal cord was still pitch perfect, for what it was worth.

First order of business, stretch my arms and comfort my body. Knowing this was a fresh new physique wasn't enough to persuade myself from omitting a bit of exercise. Pulling myself out of bed, I looked around my old room. If there was any certainty to my life, it would be this apartment of mine.

Remembering back to the last loop. The surprises, mistakes, and achievements were all meaningless now that I was back here again, at the start of yet another journey. The BETA decided to abandon a manual they never had in the first place, sending their own to crash the whole shop was definitely not following the rules of engagement. I felt frustrated that even after so long, a simple trick by the BETA still served to shock and disbelief their enemies to this extent.

Despite that, the past will forever remain only as the past. I could cry about it, and part of me was quite tempted to weep a few droplets of tears for my dead friends, for my futile attempt; but nothing could be done about my failure, if I couldn't move on from their death with a dumb smile hanging from my lips then it would forever be in vain.

 _Alright boy, you know you're stupid so don't forget to count all the stuff you gotta bring along._

Really though, I more or less only needed my Gameguy and a set of clothes. With that set course planned, I sloppily crammed all of my shit into a random bag, including the suit that was brutally murdered as I couldn't care to properly fold them.

I surveyed my house one last time before leaving through the front doors, not even bothering to close them. I exited the place that had housed me for so many years without turning back for another view. Nostalgia might have kept me for the first couple of times, but when that home only contained about two weeks' worth of food, I kinda had to get fed eventually.

—

The streets of this ruined city were just as I recalled. Passing by all the same scenery that I had seen many times over. At the beginning, I was so grateful for another chance, a chance to save the world and my friends from the cruel fate that befell all humans living here, on this planet.

I fought and fought, but no matter how much effort I put in, the unsightly death of my closest allies kept appearing as signs of my own weakness. Their smiling faces replaced with expressions of horror and anguish, my outreached hands could never pull them away from their destiny of suffering and death.

This, however, wasn't to say my campaign through time had been unfruitful, that would actually be furthest away from the truth. I grew so much, I learned so much. I could restfully, and resentfully hold a conversation with Yuuko-sensei about the Causality information and parallel worlds and all that good stuff.

My personal knowledge increased dramatically in contrast as well. I honed my skills as both an Eishi and a soldier time and time again; shooting dudes, shooting aliens, it was all instituted from the same principles, and I wouldn't say one is easier than the other, mostly because they both were somewhat a pain in the ass.

Just like professional gaming; when it's a profession, it ain't a game.

Realistically speaking though, I had full confidence that I could take on the entire forces of Yokohama Base with a Type-94. After all, we had dudes who kamikazed themselves and blown open gates for the BETA… fucking prodigies, every last one of them.

As for my hand-to-hand combat skills, I was pretty good at beating people up, feeding them some knuckle sandwiches and the like. I haven't lost a one-on-one in about… sometime, hopefully.

Even so, all these wonderful feats I was capable of were next to nothing on the grand stage. No single soldier no matter how strong or powerful could adjust the outcome of a war. For us humans, the result of this war was quite clearly not in our favour.

 **Yokohama Base, UN Pacific army headquarters**

I climbed past the cherry blossom trees planted on both sides of the street leading up to the school. It was believed that the souls of those soldiers that fell in battle would be at rest here. A touching story, people always relied on fantasies and faith in times of powerlessness, I too would sometimes find myself praying for my old teammates to protect my life in the next world.

Finally, the front gate of my old school came in sight, guarded by two UN soldiers. Two individuals that I would like to not converse with, but real world was never an easy place.

"What are you doing here?" The first question was asked by the Japanese man with a friendly tone.

"You taking a stroll or something? Not much to see out there, you know." The other guard, an African, American or wherever guy told me the same line just like every other time.

Funnily, this part of my adventure was highly on-rails; as in I could do pretty anything short of killing their families and the dialogue they would say back at me wouldn't change, interesting mechanics our world had.

"Aye boys! Must be tiring standing guard outside in this weather." I started a conversation that was unrelated to their questions.

"Huh? What are you talking about now? Just show us your ID and permit, then go back to your squadron." Unfortunately, they decided not to go along with my icebreaker.

"Fine, you caught me, not cut out to be a spy man anyway. Call Professor Kouzuki, tell her it's about Alternative IV and the double 0 system." Seeing there was no need to continue wasting time, I gave them a direct request.

"Just who are you? You don't have an insignia on that uniform… what is your name?" The second soldier picked up the fact that I wasn't yet part of the military, both men tensed up noticeably at that discovery.

"Didn't the Professor order for anything related to her to be reported directly to her? Anyway, tell her I'm… errrm… ahhh… Minamoto Yoshitsune, you know, the guy that fought in Japan wars in history."

"Stay right here, don't do anything suspicious." After whispering something between themselves, the short mustached Asian man ran back to the booth while his dark-skinned friend cautiously watched my every move.

"You're looking at me, right?"

"Just don't move, you hear me?" Patience wasn't ever a virtue of mine, and these two not feeling a chat anymore only increased the boredom.

 _My feet hurt… I'm a bit thirsty… shit, why didn't I bring my wallet? I'm fucking retarded…_

A few minutes later, the first fellow returned to us seemingly bearing good news to me as his expression was a mixture of annoyance and confusion.

"The Professor ordered for this man to be escorted to her office right away. Come with me." He gestured for me to tag along as we strolled away into the facility.

 **Yokohama Base, G** − **19 floor**

 _Please no touch my butt… please no touch my butt._ Pat-down after going through a metal-detector had always been the standard procedure for unregistered visitors to any UN base, didn't mean I enjoyed any second of it. Although it was still better than blood tests and digging into my ass, we saved that for actually suspicions visitors.

"This is the Professor's room." Eventually, our never-ending voyage had led me to the very doors that sheltered Yuuko-sensei's brilliance from being exposed to uncountable sets of prying eyes, that and her terrible sanitary habits of leaving shit piled up to the fucking ceiling.

"So should I like- knock… or—?" There was apparently no need for my worries, the automatic entrance opened itself and greeted my eyes to the absolute beauty which was Kouzuki Yuuko.

Standing relaxingly right at the dead centre of my sight, Yuuko-sensei met my gaze head-on as she studied my appearance impassively for however long she pleased. From my perspective, it had been a while since I last met sensei again; in a strange way, I missed this elegant lady and her fulfilling knockers.

"Thank you, Corporal. You are free to return to your duty now."

"Yes, ma'am." So my good buddy the escort man left with a clean salute to the Vice-Commander of Yokohama. Once the doors closed firmly behind us, I wasted no time finding the most comfortable spot on her sofa to sit while sensei walked back to her desk.

"Tell me, what is General Minamoto doing back with the living? Isn't there a stomach somewhere that he has to cut?"

"Jesus, he committed sudoku? I didn't even freaking know that! I really just picked a name at random, sorry." Nicely memed.

"Tell me your real name, young man. Or else you'll find that having an open stomach be the least of your problems." Yuuko-sensei ordered me in her serious tone, trying to gain an early upper hand in the mind games we were about to play. It was cute, points for effort.

"Is it so unbelievable that a person could come back from the dead? I mean- we're under attack by bug-like aliens after all, Yuuko-sensei."

"Sensei? I don't remember having any students."

"I do though, so just trust me, alright?"

"Sure, I'm not doubting you here, why don't you show me right now that trick of coming back to life? After I blow your brains out." Abruptly, that same-old USP 9 was drawn on me, in its own way, the pistol played a role in many of the turning points in my life.

As for Yuuko-sensei, she was really twisting her panties during this time-loop. Being stuck on a formula that could save humanity could be rather agonizing, but trying to shoot my face right off the bat was going a bit overboard.

"No please, don't hurt me… don't… hurt me…? ~What is love~!? Baby don't hurt me~! don't hurt me… no more~!" That was without a doubt the perfect opportunity for me to unleash my musical talents, yes, absolutely nailed it.

A not-even-remotely-entertained Yuuko-sensei kept staring daggers at me through her poker face. Eventually, I coughed up a part of the lyrics and the singing mood died with it. Although I was wondering as to why she haven't called the guards to take me away already.

"Alright Professor, let's get on the real topic here. I know that you are at present, stuck with your research on Alternative IV and the 00 unit." Her menacing glare was instantly shot my way stronger than ever. Reasonable, I too would be seriously angry if some random stranger learned one of the UN's biggest secrets.

"The problem you're currently having is that Quantum Mechanics and Quantum Causality theory you got won't do any good due to the physical limitation of the 00 unit. In other words, you are unable to get fifteen billion semiconductors to be the size of one's hand if I were to quote you."

"Nevertheless, no matter how small you try to squeeze the semiconductors they still won't function as intended if they must process the data at a fast enough pace."

I took a break in my explanation to discern Yuuko-sensei's fluctuating behaviour under the surface. By mere observation, it appeared as if none of what I said grabbed her attention in the slightest, but seeing through that fake mask of composure was one of my many boastful skills.

"…How do you know all this? What is your objective?"

"C'mon now. Let us finish the geek talk first."

I went ahead and grabbed a piece of paper off the floor along with a pen that was on the table. Remembering the labour of many hours I spent studying science equal to a Master's degree, I scribbled down some pretty smart looking formulas I forced myself to memorize.

 _Looks about right, please be right, brain._

"This… this is perfect…" Her expression of awe as she carefully read the content of my writing was worth every second I wasted on trying to be the next Albert Einstein. But that frightening scary scowl sensei shot my way after she finished was less so appreciated.

"I won't say this again, tell me how you learned this, right now." Her pistol was gripped intensely with two hands this time, the killing intent in this room was strong, and it almost became visible for a brief second.

"Hmm… no fun, huh? I see no point in continuing off on the wrong foot. Take me seriously and I'll explain everything to you. Know that I will never mean you any harm and I'm not with the alternative V guys in any way. But first, put down your silly gun and calmly listen to the best story you will ever hear."

After conflicting expressions representing her inner deliberation, sensei lowered her handgun and tossed it back to the many drawers of her desk.

"Alright, speak."

"I am the proof that your Quantum Causality theory holds true. My name is Shirogane Takeru. Feel free to check me up in the database, should have me marked as missing or ded." I paused for dramatic effect, as well as to give Yuuko-sensei the time to inspect my profile on her computer.

"The UN database here does say you died three years ago… you weren't joking about coming back to life then."

"No. The Shirogane in this world is still long dead. I'm different, I am Shirogane Takeru from a parallel universe where BETA doesn't even exist." It seemed that my firm attitude and serious mien was able to convince Yuuko-sensei that I was not batshit crazy.

"You know during the operation to retake the Yokohama hive, when they decided to drop Two G-bombs here and blown everything to kingdom come? The Shirogane in this world was affected by the G-element and after some high-level bioreaction or whatever I was made into a Causality Conductor across all universes." Yuuko-sensei kept her attention focused solely on me as I continued my story of the past.

"So on October 22, 2001. I was suddenly pulled into this world with no idea what happened. I wandered around the ruined city until I reached the place that was my school, then it turned out to be a military base."

"Fortunately, you, Yuuko-sensei from my first loop hooked me up with some high-level clearance and I helped you with whatever you wanted done. During my first time, I learned nothing about the Alternative plans until it was too late."

"December 25 was the due date and unfortunately that time, we couldn't hand in jackshit. So Alternative IV was scrapped and Alternative V began, which fucked up the world pretty good. I wasn't lucky enough to be the one percent, so I ended up fighting on this wasted planet and died."

The first half of my story came to an end. I paused for a QnA, but Yuuko-sensei had my heart-wrenching story all figured out.

"But you know, being the Causality Conductor and all the world just couldn't let me go. Therefore, I ended up waking up on the same date, today. Then I proceeded to continue my journey. After that, there is really not much to report. Seeing that I'm still here can only tell us one thing. Humanity is kinda pretty fucked."

So there, my story reached its subsequent conclusion. A breath-taking story if I did say so myself. Of course about over seventy percent of details were left out to avoid giving Yuuko-sensei any chance to find some plot holes, the best method of not being caught with a lie is to technically not lie.

"This is a very interesting story, Shirogane. But a more interesting story would be how you came up with all this disillusion." Well, that was just plain spiteful.

"I don't give a single shit if you trust my thing or not. While I do prefer if you believe me, the fact is I'll have my goal achieved no matter what happens."

"So then what is your objective, Mr. Causality Conductor? Trying to save this fucked up world?" Sensei spoke that sentence as if it was a joke, perhaps she was right, and in many ways, I knew she was right.

"Of course. For all these countless years I spent repeating the same hell, my only purpose is to bring this hell with me back above ground." I declared my intentions with such solid belief that I didn't think Yuuko-sensei would have any doubt.

"That is a nice goal, Shirogane. But let's talk seriously here. As a scientist I need to see proof, or else you can be just some crazy kid off the street that somehow got his hands on international secrets." Yuuko asked me for evidence of my fable.

"I could tell you your three sizes, Professor. But I like for you to think of that as my abilities instead."

"To know the three sizes of a female just by looking?"

"A very special ability, right?"

"Sure, lay it on me, give me my numbers."

"Alright, I was lying." She got me good, 10/10 did not expect.

"…Literally zero dedication, what're you, the French?"

"Ah- ahahaha! Fucking nice! Damn those jokes are what you're known for Yuuko-sensei, I missed you… you know? In all seriousness, I will show you some fruit of my effort in the form of TSF piloting skills as proof. Know that there is no better pilot than me."

"Such heavy words for you to casually throw out. Come on then, I will have a simulation set up right away." It was strange enough for sensei to trust me by this much already, but I was not one to complain about progress.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Simulation Chamber**

Yuuko never thought of herself as anything less than a genius in the field of physics, especially in her original theory of Quantum Causality. So when someday a man that claimed to be the walking proof of her very theory appeared right in front of her. She should be deeply excited and moved; should.

Yuuko couldn't say that she was highly fond of the person who constantly had a smug smile pasted directly onto his face. He served to remind her of another specific individual who also enjoyed harassing her at all times across multiple occasions.

Nevertheless, this Shirogane Takeru seemed to view himself as some sort of all capable being trying to become the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. Even though Yuuko wouldn't deny that in the current situation of this world, they were really in need of a saviour.

Speaking of her new guest, Shirogane sauntered coolly out of the changing room, now wearing the standard officer's fortified suit. Checking once more with the workers on site, he boarded the simulator that Yuuko went out of her way to set up specifically for him. After strapping himself in, the young adult tested his connection to the control room.

"—CP, you reading me here? This thing ain't broken, right? Don't embarrass yourself and the maintenance crew, Professor!" His obnoxious voice echoed in Yuuko's ear, causing another mild headache for the self-proclaimed genius scientist.

"—Yeah… I read you, Shirogane. Which course do you want me to throw at you? Know that anything below Combat A-3 will earn you a ticket straight to the detention cells."

"I haven't done this in so long I can't remember how we rank the difficulties, just like- do the hardest one, I guess." His simplified statement of confidence sat quite well with Yuuko.

"Alright, this is Advanced Combat Training Program Y-4. Your mission is to infiltrate a hostile camp located on the top of a mountain. The Bandits on site consist of twenty Type-77 Gekishins, twenty Type-82 Zuikakus, ten Type-94 Shiranuis and five Type-00 Takemikazuchis. Your mission will be completed when all hostile units have been eliminated. The best time so far is twenty-nine minutes and thirty-three seconds. Good luck."

Closing her sentence with a regular report of highest score and unusual cheer for the combatant, Yuuko boosted up the simulation by the humble click of a button. If Shirogane was every bit as good as he swanked to be, the results she would see should provide a good source of amusement.

—

"—Oh, yo, boss! Can I have a callsign or something?" As the simulation loaded in the background, Shirogane demanded to be named for his troubles.

"—How about Dumbass-1, you can be the only member."

"~Ahahaha! Sure, sure, I had worse. Doesn't say much about your creativity though, Professor! Anyway, Dumbass-1 to CP. ETA thirty seconds, all systems green, ready for launch. Requesting permission to engage."

Not too sure if she could afford to join his tempo, Yuuko restricted herself from offering Shirogane a response. As for his loadout, the apparently veteran Eishi asked for Strike Vanguard, not an uncommon set of equipment to run in the field. Two rifles, two swords, and two knives would do right at the hands of any skillful pilots.

"Come on now, Yuuko-sensei. Work with me here. You are making me embarrassed if you don't cooperate." Tiredly, Yuuko sighed, but thinking it as an occasion to insult her arrogant newcomer, she collaborated with Shirogane's nonsense.

"CP to Dumbass-1, use of lethal force is authorized, weapons free, you're clear to engage all Bandits."

"Copy that. Dumbass-1 launching." Shirogane's loud giggle resonated within the control room as Yuuko exhaled again, wondering the reason for his childlike behaviour.

—

"—Just as they teach in marketing, the basic strat to TSF combat is see, think, do; as in I see two 77s who just rocket boosted to my three, think that their AI don't have the computing power to acquire me in time after making the calculations for that jump, and do- that's shooting them down with two bursts of 36mm!"

Regardless of her personal opinion on this bizarre Eishi, Yuuko couldn't possibly avoid the undeniable truth threatening to slam into her face. Shirogane unquestionably was in a league of his own as an ace pilot, never before in life had Yuuko witness such prowess at mastering the mechanical craft while also donating some insight to his thought process as he miraculously demolished the AI fighters.

"Alright people, just to remind you guys. This has just been declared as a top-secret simulation recording. Leaking any information will result in appropriate punishment." The scientist had to make sure no one would catch wind of this ultimate trump card that just happened to fall graciously into her laps.

"People are dead, okay!? Mission success, CP! Dumbass-1 is gonna pop outta here now, cool!?" Shirogane joyfully hopped onto the hallway underneath once Yuuko released him from the simulation pod. His cheerful attitude was well earned, and as much as she hated admitting it; his egotistic personality was well deserved.

"Let's see his scores." After signalling Shirogane to change and meet Yuuko in her office, she pensively watched his footage again.

"Overall results are as follows. Time taken: seventeen minutes and five seconds. Accuracy: seventy-seven percent. Damage taken: four percent. Overall performance rating: one hundred and six percent."

"That's a new record for us?"

"That's a new world record… ma'am."

"Yeah… I got a feeling we're going into a new world."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Was the old record by someone in A-01?" I asked out of mere curiosity. Yuuko-sensei shot me a glance but winded up answering anyway.

"Yeah, I think damage percent was twenty-five and overall was seventy-three, time was what I said earlier."

"Valkyries' Storm Vanguard One did that?" Her gaze was filled with skepticism, but whether sensei answered or not really wasn't a concern.

"Yup, I suppose Hayase is a bit famous."

"Doesn't matter, kids! Me'sa top pilot, Hayase a shit!" Maybe my fondness of parody wasn't similar to sensei's viewpoint on comedy.

"Well Shirogane, that record is probably gonna stay there for a good couple of years until the next generation of TSFs come along… or I get another you to break it. So congratulations I guess. Although I don't think there is a reason for you to be overjoyed. This just creates more work for me, having to classify your information."

Yuuko-sensei loosened herself unto her office chair, shifting her weight backwards as she leisurely typed away on her computer. Although I often found her glance switching back to me, a triumphant smirk never departing from her lips.

"So are you willing to believe my story now, Yuuko-sensei?" I asked a straight question instead of throwing any more curve balls.

"Look here, Shirogane. What you just proved to me was that you may be the single best Eishi in this world right now. But is that because your decades spent traveling through time or some other crazy reason I still don't know. I can't fully believe your time traveling story as of yet, also you have done nothing to proof that you aren't an anti-Alternative IV agent." Sensei made some good points against me, logical thinking had always been her forte.

Besides, it wasn't like I didn't want to tell Yuuko about the details and backstories to what happened, I just wanted to try to convince her with only my words. For the pure blissful sensation of me winning an argument with this mad scientist, which wouldn't be a thing of reality anytime soon.

"Here sensei, I know you have difficulties with trusting my tale of time travel and the ridiculous stuff that's coming out of my mouth. But at the very least I need you to understand my only purpose all this time is to save this world and the people who I care about." I tried my hardest to convince Yuuko-sensei of my honest feelings, something I hadn't done in a long time.

"Your words sound very nice indeed… but still, showing me proof would help your case immensely." The stalemate presented no signs of ever stopping. At this point, I was getting bored of trying to persuade her with only my talk.

"In all honestly. Yuuko-sensei, you need me way more than I need you. But it's not like I really have that much secrets to hide. How about this, Why don't you just call Kasumi over and get her to testify for me."

Yuuko-sensei didn't even attempt to fake uneasiness by my mention of Kasumi. She simply took another hard glare at me as always before reaching for the phone.

"So… you know about her too? Why didn't you mention her beforehand?"

"I believe the proper question is why you didn't?"

"Shit… you're right, she was next door this whole time, could've called whenever."

"It's fine, we all forget stuff."

 _Fucking idiot, dumb booty bimbo._

"-Takeru-san, that's not a nice thing to think about the Professor." By the swooshing sound of her office's door sliding open, my favourite bunny girl of them all made her appearance.

Yashiro Kasumi, the emotionless Russian loli whose face is almost a still frame of a never changing expression, and whose age is a matter of national security- quite literally, actually, as my arrest would most likely result in Japan being overrun by them aliens.

Still, she was the cutie that always remained by Sumika's side, and mine too; after somehow being able to retain her memories following the reset of my world. She was precious to me, in so many ways I couldn't describe.

"Knew you'll pick that up, girl. Tell her what I thought."

"No." Instant rejection, never felt good.

"Yashiro, you know this man?" Unaffected by our internal talk, Yuuko-sensei pushed for the topic to be in her favour.

"Yes."

"Where do you know him from?"

"Takeru-san arrives every time to help with the development of Alternative IV and the 00 unit." Kasumi gave a positive answer, which was also fortunately the truth.

"How many times have you met him?" A little pause before she spoke again.

 _Don't give sensei too many details, Kasumi. I will explain when the time is right_. Focusing on one single sentence, I was confident Kasumi could notice my message.

" _Okay._ " It was always wonderful how my girl was so cooperative, but more helpful was how she learned to respond to my comments with an understandable reply.

"I can't remember exactly how many times we've met. It looked to be every time the loop resets I receive all the information from the past loops on October 22, 2001." I happily deemed her answer satisfactorily.

"So is it true that this man is a time traveller?"

"Yes."

"Has he ever betrayed the UN as far as you know?"

"No."

"Alright then, Yashiro. Thank you for your time, you can go now." Yuuko-sensei sent her off with a rare genuine smile.

"Good one, Kasumi. I will drop by later to talk again, okay? Also sorry for wasting your time when you were so busy doing nothing." Might as well let her go with a joke.

"It's alright Takeru-san, I will see you then." Kasumi proceeded to walk out the room as she finished her statement, I had a hard time believing my gag just went over her head.

 _Whoosh!_

" _Nice wave noise, Takeru-san._ " This kid was unbelievable, literally zero sense of humour.

"Shirogane, you know how time is money?"

"Sure."

"Then you know how you're seriously indebted to me right now for wasting so much of my money?"

"Nah, don't be such a gold digger, sensei. Now that you no longer doubt me, let's get down to business." I offered, completely ignoring the fact that I blew almost two hours with meaningless talks and activities, albeit intelligent talks and compelling activities.

"Haa… go ahead and tell me what you want, Shirogane. I hope working with you will get us both what we want."

"I've a few requests that're all within your capabilities, sensei. First, I want to be placed as a member of the 207 training squad and be given the free room down that hallway next to the rest of the cadets."

"Ohh, wanting to go back into the cadets, Shirogane? Won't you be more useful if you joined the Special Task Force instead?" A very much valid point, however no employment position could demand twenty-four hours of work, I hoped.

"That wouldn't be a bad idea, but I prefer to be with my girls, they are the ones who are most important to me in any case. You can call me if you have a mission that only someone of my skills can take care of, don't be shy." Yuuko-sensei uncaringly nodded.

"Second, I want full clearance to access all components of this base. Also, a pass that allows me to avoid all security checkpoints under control by the UN." This was also part of the usual. Being forced through a checkpoint was such a pain in the ass, so was having an actual pain up my ass.

"How unreasonable, Shirogane. But I understand, I'll hand you a pass that lets you go anywhere no questions asked."

"One last thing. I want to be promoted to First Lieutenant. Being a cadet can be a cover or something. Promise I won't boss dudes around for fun, I just need it in case some shit goes down that can't be talked out of. Backstory and whatever is on you, sensei. I know that's the highest rank you are authorized to give out, so… gimme- gimme!" This time I was just shamelessly demanding a promotion.

"I guess that is to be accepted from someone of your caliber. Honestly though, it'll be nice to have the General to promote you straight to Captain and working personally for me. But I know that you have other plans, I'll handle all the paperwork and procedure necessary for your promotion. It won't be very useful to you as long as you don't blow your own cover. Have fun with it, I suppose."

Again, Yuuko-sensei easily acknowledged another unreasonable demand. She didn't give off the impression of being bothered by what I insisted on in the slightest. So I guess we were golden on that front. Being the vice commander probably left her with much unused authority.

"That'll be all for now. Although I'll be borrowing Kasumi from time to time, but it's not like I'm going to force her hand so don't worry. Let's hear yours then, sensei."

"You should know the only thing that I need. The finished Quantum Causality theory, we're all just circle jerking here without it. I'd also like information on the future, however since I don't know what could happen I will trust that you, Shirogane shall inform me of the critical information."

"I shall do just that, sensei! For example, if you finish the 00 unit with the current theory she'll need to be connected to that reactor every forty-two hours, was it?" Sumika's information leaking problem was easily the biggest issue with her. Preventing our knowledge from becoming their knowledge was a good direction to go if we wanted victory.

"Depends on the coolant and the state of her processor. But yeah, it will be around that time period."

"Well, connecting the 00 unit to the reactor is a big no-no. The knowledge that she possesses will be transferred to the BETA Hivemind, the Kashgar Hive's reactor. The BETA reactors share all the information they learn with the Kashgar reactor, then that information is distributed to all other Hives on this planet."

"No shit… we had a couple of theories on BETA's intelligence gathering, that structure was one of the proposals."

"Lucky for you; I, being the great all-knowing time traveller already have the solution to this problem. I'll come by later and give you the improved theory." Running my mouth like some kind of genius, there was no way I'd tell her that it was Yuuko-sensei who came up with the solution after two dozen loops.

"So the reactor acts just like any BETA, we thought it was only a computing device. Thanks for the help. I look forward to working with you from now on, Shirogane Takeru. Here, full clearance for this base. Go to meet your squad after you've settled your things in your room. I will be waiting for the new theory 'the other me' wrote."

Yuuko-sensei's condescending grin she hid under her normal grin devilishly exposed itself as I lost the proper words to retort.

"Damn, woman… looking forward to working with you."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

Yuuko scanned around her peaceful office after the proud Shirogane made his departure. Recalling that way that young man spoke and acted, being so easygoing and laid-back when he had the skills to destroy an entire division of BETA without breaking a sweat.

He was an intriguing asset, there was no doubt about that.

"Well, I guess it's called Deja-vu because people don't know when they first experienced it." Yuuko reminded herself as she worked to fulfill the young man's request.

—

 **Updated on 28/05/2017**

 **Author's note**

 **This is my first story posted here, I chose Muv-Luv because this is the game that was the most impactful out of anything else I ever played, visual novel wise. If you happen to be reading this, I would assume you have already played or know the visual novel's storyline. And you also know the terms used in the game and will be used** **in this fic. My grammar and writing style may not be the best, but I hope to overcome that weakness with good storytelling and intriguing plot. Thank you and please enjoy.**

As you should know, Muv-Luv and all of its characters are owned by age. Who developed the amazing rUGP engine which is too strong for my computer...

Anyway, this is a generic fan-fic which Takeru goes back in time, like all the other fan-fic out there. So I do apologize for the repetitiveness. English isn't even my second language so I will again apologize for the some of the mistakes in this story I couldn't catch. If you have any criticism please write a constructed review and let me know. I hereby thank all of you for reading and until next time.

BETA done by chad001


	2. Ch2: With Blackjack and Hookers

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **October 22, 2001**

 **Yokohama barracks**

 _Exit elevator to the left, take the second right hallway, run away from the boulder, go straight down the third hallway on the left, enter Mordor, my room should be the fourth door._

When it came to many factors of life, I was made to be a big fan of grand performances and extravagant displays. However as said by Leonardo da Vinci: 'Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.' And in the case of my quarter, that wasn't too far from the truth.

The dirtied white marble sink, the creaking metal bunk on the verge of falling apart any night, the cheap wooden desk and a single door closet; this was where I lived for many years according to my decaying memory, this was a room I called home for the longest time.

After I dumped off the random array of household items not known to this world, I took a quick rest to mentally prepare myself for another meeting with the team of girls exercising down by the field. Like so many of our introductions that came before it, I was quite determined to leave a historic first impression regardless of good or bad.

 **Yokohama base, training field**

As I slowly walked over by where my future team was training, the sight of a single girl running laps while enduring her ever-increasing-fatigue caught my eyes. A single blue pony-tail tied at an impossible angle swayed gently in the wind from her exercise. Droplets of her sweat reflected a meek ray of the afternoon sunlight, reminding me of the many similar trials prior in my life.

"Excuse me. You there." Finally taking notice of an unregistered presence; the girl, Meiya called out to me who approached her.

 _Alright, I trained for this_.

"My dude." Of all the possibilities of my first line of dialogue to one of my most precious friends, this phrase in particular I had practiced for a long time.

"Hm? Excuse me?"

"My good man."

"Apologies, but I must ask you to repeat that."

"My fine comrade of whom is objectively viewed as a gentleman."

"…You seem to be mistaken, I shall make it as clear as ever right here. I am a female." Meiya casually glanced at me in mild confusion, my intentional blunder caused slight frustration for her which she skillfully hid beneath her demeanor.

"…To this fellow Homo sapiens of the male gender in his late teen years of which I consider to be mine in a purely metaphorical sense as a fitting and satirical representation of our good friendship."

"You—! Hooh…! I see you dare to deliberately insult me after I fully explained how I am not a man! Is this a form of challenge towards me, stranger!? In that case, prepare yourself!"

In that moment, I seriously thought about whipping Meiya's ass for the laughs, seeing how unease she was feeling due to my unnatural attitude of not giving a flying fuck. However it just didn't seem right to blow my nicely knitted cover so early in the game, thus I just calmly studied Meiya and her A-P bazooka hair for what felt like an eternality.

"-That's enough! Both of you stop immediately!" Thankfully, a familiar voice came to my rescue not a second sooner.

"Instructor?! But this strange man here could be a potential threat!" Some not-very-kind-words were shouted by the purple-haired samurai.

From my blind spot, the one and only mentor of the 207th Training Squad waved off Meiya's caution. Jinguuji Marimo put some hassle into her steps as she jogged over to where I stood, eyeing me up and down suspiciously without any love in her gaze.

"You are Shirogane Takeru?"

"Yup, that's me alright." Funnily, my casual reply brought only an unhappy glare from Marimo-chan, yet she responded nothing more.

"…Then this man is…"

"Ahhh… 207th Squadron! Assemble!" Hearing their Instructor's booming voice, the rest of the cadet Company gathered without delay.

"207th Squadron assembled!" The girl who called out once all the members surrounded us was Chizuru, her over-sized glasses I haven't had the pleasure of seeing made itself known as her most impactful feature. The O.G pair was always my favourite for how comically satirical their design was.

"Good… then I'll introduce him. This is Cadet Shirogane Takeru. Recently assigned to the 207th squad."

"It's a pleasure meeting you girls. I hope that we can get along fine in the future." I honestly couldn't think of anything witty to say without leaving a terrible first impression.

"As you can see, he's a man. You're probably surprised to see a male recruit nowadays. But until recently, he was exempt from the draft." Marimo-chan's introduction was something I had the displeasure of hearing again and again countless times.

"Being a civvie was fun while it lasted, but since I'm here I'll be working hard as a solider." Each of the girls were scanning me discreetly, trying to figure out the personality of their newest member.

"He will be training with us starting tomorrow. Understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Everyone answered loudly.

"For now, eat with him and learn to get along. Afterwards, Sakaki, you will escort him to the barracks and give him anything he needs." As the events headed towards its scripted conclusion, I wasn't too eager to repeat every single step of my early days.

"Actually, I won't be needing any guides. I was already given one in detail before I arrived here."

 _If some dipshit tells me the PX means café one more time I'm gonna smash his ugly mug with an even uglier mug._

"Is that so, Shirogane? Then we'll continue training for the remaining ten minutes. You can stay there and watch."

"Understood."

—

I observed everyone as they ran the marathon. It was clear as day that their stamina and speed was severely dreadful, watching them pant and gulp for air after only running ten klicks really was pitiful no matter how many times I witnessed this scene.

I remembered back in some of my more successful loops where everyone was around the same skill level as me, the times when we were able to cut through hordes and armies like they were the frail vases and plates shown in museums resurfaced within my mind.

Yet with every failure, I came back stronger and better while everyone else was forced back to the starting line. My teammates, my closest friends were unwillingly made back into mere novices while I became the only one who reaped all the benefits. It really made me think, if they were the ones with my power, maybe they could have already saved the world from its disastrous end.

 _Well, unlucky._

 **Yokohama Base, PX**

"Man, these wooden chairs are really uncomfortable." Sitting down along with the rest of my recently acquainted Squadron at the PX, Meiya, Tama and Chizuru took the seats across from me while Ayamine sat to my left.

"…Wanna buy us better ones?" As expected of the quirky witty Ayamine, she was the first one to continue my statement.

"Nope, although I should get a special one for myself, like the black leather chair the Professor has."

"I don't think they'll allow that, Shirogane. And besides, if you don't know this, your paycheck is frozen until you graduate from training. They'll let you buy a couple of things from the store, but until you become a soldier your money can't be used wildly." Chizuru did her classic pose with her index finger sticking out as she explained our economic situation to someone who fortunately didn't have to deal with it.

"Alright, sweet protip, Class rep. Will keep in mind."

"…Class rep? Are you referring to me?"

"You know, back when I was in high school- right. I had a Class rep, actual one, who looked like your twin sister, Chizuru."

"Don't just start calling people by their first name, Shirogane!" Making a passable argument while also flustering feverishly didn't really help strengthen her justification. Chizuru crossed her arms in what I could only call tsundere anger and upsettingly glared at me.

"Sure, sure. You just kinda remind me of her, with those ridiculously round glasses screaming 'I'm the world's best nerd!' and all… it's a real throwback for me."

"Well, that's not really an excuse, you know!?"

"…C'mon now… don't be like that. My old Class rep was a strict person, a harsh person. But under her tsundere tendencies lay a true, friendly girl who is always kind and accepting. And it's just… I think you're someone quite similar to someone I deeply respect and care about." Chizuru slightly averted my gaze, not remotely helping me in brightening the mood.

"Shirogane…" The details of that tale may not be there, but the feeling beneath it came from my very heart.

"So yeah, sorry about that, Sakaki. I do miss her, in a lot of ways." I ended my short story, along with it the recollection of me and Class rep back in our old world and this one. We spent many hours together, the times when our mutual feelings never died down.

"So where is she now, Shirogane-san?" Tama asked me, her expression of joy for my happiness was shown clearly on her cat-like face. It was such a genuine face, it was the appearance of a truly nice individual.

"…I'm gonna not talk about that… if you can understand." Realizing the simple meaning of my withdrawal from further discussion, no one said much else as we sat in gloomy silence.

"But you know… that's just how things are. There're happy days I can laugh to and sad days I can cry to. Living life isn't so easy with how the world is, so I think it's important to remember the good times when they're gone." Not one big on philosophy myself, I didn't talk too much about my own experience.

"…How deep. Are you Plato junior?" Ayamine made quite a discrete connection.

"I see that you also come from difficult past, my condolences to you, Shirogane."

"It's okay, Shirogane-san. Let's work together and create more memories to enjoy!"

"Shirogane… I guess I won't mind if you call me Class rep, but don't go overboard with it, okay?" I was really lucky to have these friends, I could feel their kindness even when we only knew each other for a few hours.

"Then don't present me with opportunities too much, I live off memes, you see." Rays of confused stares were the answer to my warning.

"…Proceeding onwards, Shirogane. The Instructor asked me to give this to you." Meiya called to me once the previous talk ended. It was a piece of paper she handed me, it had words on them.

"Ah, thanks, Mitsurugi. Shirogane, have that memorized by tomorrow. You have to recite the oath in order to enlist."

"An enlistment oath? Alright I got this." The paper was stashed away at a rush, I didn't want to bring up anything about this oath considering how it would be broken to pieces in the near future.

"Another thing, Shirogane."

"Uh-huh?"

"I'll be blunt. Can we… expect much out of you? Instructor Jinguuji told us you were a 'special person'. So is that 'special' compared to us? Or everyone in the country? On this planet?" This age-old dilemma was freshly offered to me once again, I shuffled backwards leaning into my seat, thinking about a solution to their curious and vital inquiry.

"I'm a 'special person' huh…? It's pretty complicated, I want to believe I'm capable of many things, and I have in fact done many things. But… how should I say this… I've been going forward to reach a goal really far away, and I'm doing what I can to achieve it. So in that sense, I'm good for who I am."

"One's competence is composed of experience and willpower, I see you have gathered plentiful of both, Shirogane." Meiya confidently nodded to me, smiling gently and trustfully.

"Professor Kouzuki and Instructor Jinguuji both have faith in him! I'm sure he'll be fine!" Tama also supported my cause.

"…I hope so." Ayamine, the girl that never forgets to comment.

"A month from now, there'll be a Comprehensive Combat Skill Evaluation. We have to win this time." Class rep brought up the next topic just like I predicted.

"We have over a week, so Yoroi should return in time to join us. We need the 207th Squadron to be as strong as possible when the time comes." Following up, Meiya informed me about our missing fifth member.

"Yoroi Mikoto. I wonder what she's like."

"Huh… you know her?" A reasonable reaction from Class rep. I did bring up Mikoto's full name, in any case.

"I read all your files from Professor Kouzuki before I joined. I know stuff like basic backgrounds and such. Should be discharged soon, that girl."

"Yes, we have over a week. Well, Yoroi's skills, especially in survival are second to none. She will be much needed if we want to pass the Comprehensive Combat Skill Evaluation." Chizuru said with ample enthusiasm.

"Sounds good, I'll do whatever I can to help."

"Excellent, we're expecting a lot coming from you, Shirogane. And hopefully it won't end disastrous like the last time."

Truth be told, I was somewhat convinced the girls still held grudges against each other for their previous failing. Thinking it wasn't their own fault the test went to shit or it couldn't be helped if their teammates were clueless as to the objective. Although none of them knew that attitude was the core factor to shoulder the blame, but we still had time to practice, time to fix their mistakes.

"We are free for the rest of the day, right? Can I go?" Now that our little chat passed its finale, I asked for dismissal since I wished to see my two espers. Technically, it was more like one esper and a brain, but details, details.

"Yeah, don't forget your oath tomorrow!"

"Please, does insulting my intelligence bring you much joy?"

 **Sakaki Chizuru**

"Shirogane Takeru. What an interesting person indeed." Chizuru's teammate, Mitsurugi mentioned her new teammate as soon as he left.

"He did say some pretty mature things, I wonder what his story is."

"Emm, don't you guys get this feeling… kind of like we had already met Shirogane-san before?" The group turned their attention to Tamase when she conveyed an unusual topic.

"…Tamase… explain."

"Well I kinda felt like we had known each other from somewhere, but it's a very vague feeling though."

"I cannot say that I understand, yet at the same time I cannot deny your claim. This is indeed quite mysterious." Mitsurugi considered about the feelings that she got without coming to a conclusion.

"Could it just because his personality? His behaviour is 'special' in many ways." Chizuru promoted another idea.

"That also could be it. I myself am not too sure about this as well."

"Maybe a weirdo."

"There isn't too much reason to think about this right now. Let's just see how things turn out."

"Yes. That would be a favourable choice." The girls ended their discussion of Shirogane behind his back.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Yokohama Base, the brain room**

I roamed in the brain room once the doors opened. Kasumi who was in her usual corner turned and greeted me with a nod.

"Hello, Takeru-san." I assumed she was happy to see me since her nonexistent expression didn't tell me anything. Those bunny ears twitched rapidly as I patted her head, hopefully articulating her joy in reuniting with me.

 _Quick, who's your favourite character from Futurama!? Kasumi!_

" _Bender-san, I like his humour_." Surprisingly solid pick from Kasumi, she could learn a thing or two from that metal tin-can man.

 _Nice, I think my favourite is that bald Chinese girl, that one that married an alien… I think?_

" _I'm certain her name is Amy Wong, I too vaguely remember someone wearing a wig in that show, although I'm not sure if it's her._ " She was an all-around alright character, had a really fat butt or something.

 _Well, who's your favourite character from Futurama… Sumika?_ The fictional bait dangled to a smooth beat before my eyes as I waited for the brain in a vat to react.

" _Oh! Oh hello Takeru-chan! Let me just thank you for finally noticing me! As for my favourite character from Futurama- I don't really have one, you know? I mean there's just so much people to choose from, it's hard to narrow it down to one person! But if I must, I guess it'll be Mr. Ron Popeil!_ " The name Sumika mentioned through telepathy wasn't one I expected.

 _Hold on, who that?_

" _Oh, whaaa~! You mean you don't know, Takeru-chan!? He's the founder of Ronco! That American company that makes kitchen stuff! But he also appeared in Futurama too! As the guy who invented PUTTING HEADS INTO JARS! WHAT A FUNNY COINCIDENCE, RIGHT!?_ "

"…Wot in tarnation?" Her zappy high-pitched voice echoed irritatingly in my head without a stop.

" _HA! You thought you fooled me yet again, TAKERU-CHAN! You and your decade-old brain jokes every time we meet! I've been waiting so long for this moment because I knew you'll eventually bring up something I know more about!_ "

 _So like… you actually watch the show?_

" _I GOT YOU THIS TIME, TAKERU-CHAN YOU BIG FAT DUMB IDIOT! I'll have you know I binged four seasons in two weeks' time without stopping to do anything productive!_ "

… _A surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one._ To be honest, I kinda couldn't think of an actual comeback for her. Thankfully my backup memes were abundant in supply.

" _O-oh-oh w-w-wait! I know this- I know this! Errmm…! It's the part where the black guy goes like… ahem! 'In the name of the Galactic Senate of the Republic… you're under arrest, Chancellor!_ " Sumika's esper shout was one of gleeful eagerness and joy, perhaps having already forgotten her ill-gotten victory. Although I was glad she too understood the importance of a good delivery, meaning my follow-up had to be on par.

 _Are you threatening me, Master Jedi?_

" _The Senate will decide your fate._ " There it was, the punch-est of all the punch-lines, a quote that defined the Chancellor himself, many would claim. I was determined to do my Emperor proud by wonderfully executing his greatest honour.

… _I am the Se—_

"-I DON'T LIKE SAND."

Kasumi, who pretended to be the dormant observer this entire time had struck hard when no one expected, she screamed at the top of her lungs a line totally unrelated to our instance of a memorable scene, but also because as a Russian tube girl without any feelings, she really didn't yell that loudly; or at all. It was a lot like trying to whisper into a microphone, except the opposite.

"…Wow… wow, really, Kasumi? I thought you were better than this… This be like… a real shock to me as your parental figure, you know? I mean… interrupting a man's meme… that's quite low."

" _It's treason then._ " Sumika too mirrored my opinion.

"Stop this, please stop this. You just got back from another death, Takeru-san. Please take things more seriously, such as how you're perceiving your new body. Have you experienced any signs of discomfort or nausea after coming to this world? Has injuries from our previous time carried over; i.e, the intruding tentacle which pe—"

"Hold up, Kasumi. You really kinda lost me."

"Where, Takeru-san?"

"When you said 'Stop'." Her dead-fish look was doing what it could to burn a hole into my chest, seemingly not afraid of fading into oblivion as she stared on.

" _Seriously though, Takeru-chan! Are you feeling all good? Six-eyed Cthulhu really penetrated you hard… sexually?_ "

 _Just regularly, thank you._

" _Right, and it was trying to do something pretty bad to you while you were connected… there shouldn't be any effect that could carry over from that loop to this one, but I won't be surprised if you suddenly start shedding shells like a lobster. That'll be kinda disgusting, like- ewww~ stay away from me, Takeru-chan you gooey lobster._ "

I too was very grateful that my current girlfriend who had a long-lasting track record of being incredibly encouraging, supportive and not-at-all prone to violent outbursts was again acting incredibly encouraging, supportive and definitely incapable of violent outbursts.

 _Damn girl, you're being a real cunt without even having one._

" _Anyway, Maybe I can get sensei to run a couple of tests on you once I'm outta here. For now, just be careful not to be sucked into an infinite expanding spiral coming from your belly button or something, okay? Stay safe!_ "

 _Yo, you talking about that one Uzumaki chapter with the pimple girl? That manga was honestly legit scary as shit. I mean how do you get sucked into yourself? Is that even physically possible?_ By some strange force of nature, I was having a casual relaxing conversation with a brain in a tube.

" _Oh! That's like that thing with the snake where it eats itself! Errrm…! What's it called, what's it called… it was like the seven sins people in Fullmetal!_ "

" _Ouroboros, the word describes an image of a snake or serpent eating its own tail, forming an infinitely cycle of life and death along with other interpretations._ " Straight-A student Kasumi came to Sumika's rescue with a Wikipedia answer, should had gotten references next time, this was gonna lower her mark.

" _Righto! I remember that's where they got the infinity symbol from… I dunno, what were we talking about again?_ "

 _Don't even remember, probably not important enough though._

"Takeru-san, fifty-three seconds earlier the discussion about your current body condition was ongoi—"

" _Blah-blah-blah! We weren't being serious, Kasumi-chan! Learn to read the mood, okay?! It's just getting kinda weird since we ran out of stuff to talk about! …Welp! So how're you really feeling, Takeru-chan!? Does it… still kinda hurt or something?_ Strangely, a sentimental feeling of warmth whelmed me from Sumika's concerning sound message.

 _I'm fine, probably… can't remember everything that happened by now, I think… lots of people died again, right?_

When my posted question was met with uncomfortable silence, it wasn't hard to realize when to stop. I placed my palm on the transparent glass cylinder that was separating me from Sumika and her from death, from time to time it was difficult to come to terms with my loss and my inability to learn from those mistakes.

" _We're here now, you don't have to think about it, Takeru-chan! Actually, I'd prefer if you just forget most of the stuff that happened before! Like when you play your video games you've to not tile if you wanna do good!_ "

"Git gud, Takeru-san, git gud." The young Russian girl tugged on my left sleeve, seemingly believing her words of encouragement wasn't what tilts me ninety percent of the time.

 _Ahh… you dumb girls really trigger me at every opportunity, but whatever… I'll bump you outta that vat soon enough, Sumika. Anything else retarded you want to say to me?_ There were things I must do, not urgently, but eventually.

" _I love you, Takeru-chan!_ "

 _Okay, totally retarded._

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"This truly is a genius idea. I knew that 'other world me' could come up with something like this." Yuuko-sensei patted herself on the back, her 'other self'.

"By changing how the processor manages the coolant material. We can get use the liquid to cool down the processor and purify the coolant itself. This right here could be the first step to unlimited energy. As expected of me." My old high school teacher was very proud of her own achievement that she didn't even obtain, kinda.

"Is this all you need to complete the 00 Unit?"

"Yeah, with this theory my life long work would be complete. Come here, Shirogane. I'll give you a kiss for reward." Extremely sudden for her, sensei got up from her desk and grabbed me by the collar of my uniform while adding a seductive twirl in her steps.

"Ha… please no, you know me… or you'll know me, Yuuko-sensei. I go big or go home. I don't back down… not often." Still, being in this close proximity to one of the most gorgeous persons I've ever met was a bit embarrassing.

"Huhu~ fufufu… very bold of you, Shirogane, but sadly I have no interest in younger men." Acting in opposition of her account, sensei leaned in even further, and with her swept in the sweet aroma of women's perfume. However, she was equally quick to back off the moment I regained my reaction.

"How long will it take to bring the 00 unit back?" After our little flirt, I asked the real question.

"Very soon, I can guarantee that you can see her physical form in a week."

"Only a week, huh. That is the fastest yet in all of my loops." My second fastest record was ten days after arrival, although I was rather confident some bad shit happened in that one.

"Will there be any other problems, sensei?"

"I'm a bit worried about the unit's mental stability."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that, sensei. I made sure with Kasumi that the 00 unit also has memories of the past." One of the many benefits of being stuck in a literal never-ending cycle of death and destruction was how I didn't have to babysit Sumika's autistic ass anymore.

"Nice, nice… hey, I got a question for you, Shirogane. How did you, Yashiro and the 00 unit preserve your memories when no one else remembers?" When I first told her who I was, I wasn't too enthusiastic about revealing myself like an open book. It was a bit uncomfortable and stuff, kinda shy about it.

"To be straightforward here sensei, I have no idea how we still remember anything. I can think of many excuses for myself, coming from a different world and all. But for Kasumi and the 00 unit, I honestly don't know." Sensei slanted her head to the side, maybe doubting my very realistic retelling of my past.

"There was one loop when I got here, Kasumi greeted me and told me that we can work together to save the world. I wasn't going to complain about having a precious friend who can accompany me in my journey throughout time." This was seriously, seriously what happened. I just woke up one day and remembered, everything.

"I guess the subject of the Causality wouldn't understand the reason behind the occurrence… whatever, if we really can save this world you can be a present from the fairy godmother for all I care." That was the attitude.

"By the way though, there is another thing I need, sensei. Can you get this stuff for me?" I changed to a new topic with a list of items I wanted her to fetch.

"Let me see… other than a single PC, I don't understand why you need these. Two bunny toys? A pair of katana? Cat tail and bell? Does starting a pawnshop help us defeat the BETA? Because if somehow it does. My entire life has been a lie." Sensei criticized about the things I demanded. Even if they were mostly just for entertainment, I still wanted something fun to play around with.

"Yuuko-sensei, leave the use of these things to me alright? Please just get them for me."

"Fine, but you should know that some items may take a while before they arrive. This world isn't at the best time to produce such merchandise. Once I get them, I'll have them sent to your room. The post office may detain you of me for having such bizarre crap though."

"This's when you pull out your diplomatic immunity and hope it doesn't get revoked by a very angry Danny Glover who's too old for this shit."

"…Huh, I know that's a movie related reference… damn it." Her genius Steven Hawken level of IQ wasn't compatible with remembering classic one-liners.

"Sensei. If nothing else, I will be going now."

"Wait. I forgot about this."

Halting my step, Yuuko-sensei waved a fancy looking envelop in the air until I took it from her hands. Inside came a single piece of paper with lots of text scribbled together as tightly as possible, whoever typed this had no clue how spacing works.

"Too lazy to read, 1st Lieutenant? Congratulations on your blackmailed promotion. Now you are officially a high-ranking officer." Cheering noises.

"Thanks sensei, everything is so fast this time, crazy!" I was used to getting a swift promotion, but never on the first day. It must be some amazing luck on my part that motivated Yuuko to do this much serious work for my sake.

"It's valid as long as you don't lose the paper, feel free to fold it for it to fit. Otherwise just show it to anyone and they will understand your true rank."

"What is my back story then?"

"It's classified. I'm just equally lazy, you know?" Classic Yuuko-sensei, never doing unnecessary work.

"Good hook up, Professor. Call me when you need me, _I gotchu, fam_."

"You can take you and your gibberish English elsewhere, Shirogane. You better come running like a good doggy when I blow my whistle, we clear?" Terribly disrespectful to me, and dogs, apparently.

 **October 23, 2001**

 **Training field**

I 'reactivated' my brain after the reciting the oath. This thing was just like the "I agree to the terms and conditions" bullshit on every program I download. Did anyone ever read all of the five hundred pages? Fuck no, just click "I Agree" and move on to the next part. This oath was the same, but even more tedious. Having to actually remember the passages.

—

"Good, now wait until the others get back. You can rest."

"Haha, love slacking off." Marimo-chan shot me a strangely judicious look out of the corner of her eye as I plummeted down onto the soft grass.

After the grand ceremony, I ran some laps along the rest of the squad when Marimo-chan ordered us to. It was a mild exercise compared to what was required of me normally during fights, a good relaxing jog was all I thought of it.

"~Haa… haa… haaaa." I saw Class rep gasping for air when she crossed the finish line, finally taking her break as well. It was understandable everyone developed at different pace, the speed of my team was generally on par with each other, although that average was painfully low compared to real veterans.

"Okay, next! Grab the gear in the cages and march ten kilometres!" Marimo-chan shouted to the team once everyone finished the first step in their daily training,

"Un-understood…" Tama and the rest of the squad received their next order, this was the time for me to shine. What I was about to do was mostly a tradition at this point, always good to play by the books.

"Yo, so like- that isn't full gear, is it? What're we even running for? A participation medal in the next Terry Fox run? I guess it's fine if we're aiming to die of cancer before crossing any finish lines, then sure."

The half awed and half angered glares from my teammates meant they knew exactly what was going to happen to me, and I would happily undertake a "punishment" if they were foolish enough to bite this bait.

"I see. Shirogane, has all that time you spent exempt from the draft given you extra energy?"

"Hell naaah! Me just some normal lazy teenager you used to be able to pick off the streets."

"Then that is no good, is it, Shirogane!? You can do it in full gear if you like, I'll have you carry a dummy machine gun too, don't be reserved!" There was basically no escaping Marimo-chan's 'mad dog' fury if I provoked her authority.

"Sure, Marimo-chan—" At that time, her brow rose a few inches too high in anger. It actually wasn't my intention to add this much fuel to her raging fire.

"HUH? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY SHIROGANE!?"

"I mean INSTRUCTOR JINGUUJI! I will run ten klicks wearing full gear and carrying a dummy machine gun and still leave my teammates in the dust like Bugs Bunny OD-ing on Adderall!" Having just openly challenged the squad, it was only a matter of time before they all fell victim to my incitement.

"How brave of you, Shirogane! Grab your gear and starting running, NOW!" I went blasting off following Marimo-chan's order.

"Instructor! I request to exercise with the same equipment as Cadet Shirogane!" The first and foremost to raise her hand, Meiya was set ablaze by her passion as she stared at me unwilling to accept defeat.

"Me too, Instructor!" Looked like Class rep was biting next.

"Em… then I will do the same. Instructor!" Tama the idiot.

"…Me too." And finally, Ayamine. Peer pressure was such a beautiful thing.

—

"You are good, Shirogane." The Instructor Jinguuji who greeted me by the finish line marked in the ground was one in a surprisingly merry mood.

"What do you mean, Instructor?" I decided to just let the conversation flow on normally, as plain as day what the reason that led to my praise was.

"You motivated your squad mates into running with full gear with you, and still beat them by this much while carrying the dummy. It was well done, kid, very well done."

Marimo "Mad Dog" Jinguuji stood unobtrusively by the side of the tracks, the warm glow of the afternoon sun poured its modest rays onto her uniform, marginally illuminating the benign smile of a mother that usually never sees the light of day. She was watching the rest of my Squad slowly grovel their way over the finish line, exhausted as anticipated.

Marimo-chan had a kind look, but it suited her all the same.

"You flatter me Instructor Marimo… _chan_." Perhaps tempted to throw another fit of rage at my aggravating use of the term, Marimo only released a tired sigh as my half-serious grin told her of my somewhat playful intention.

"You really are special, huh, Cadet Shirogane."

"Sure is, people have a tendency to say that about me."

In the end, I outran everybody by three and a half laps. No clue how it happened; they should had tried harder, put their backs into it or something. Once my teammates finally outlasted the backbreaking torture, each person was panting on the ground like they just crossed the Sahara Desert without any water. So overall, a high percentage of improvement compared to last time.

—

"Shirogane-san, you really are amazing!" Tamase Miki happily approached me first after the group stopped dying from dehydration.

"Of course, Tama! You haven't even seen my final form!" I spoke confidently, knowing my own power too well.

"…Tama? Are you referring to me, Shirogane-san?" Miki questioned the nickname that I gave her centuries ago.

"I got to be fair, you know? Everyone gets to be over familiar with me."

"I sound kind of like a cat, huuh, that's funny." She then relaxingly and without putting any effort into rejecting it, accepted her new name.

 **Jinguuji Marimo**

Now that the training for her squad was over for the day, Marimo had to go back and start filling the reports. Normally this process was boring to the extremes. Unlike all the other times, however. The enlistment of Shirogane Takeru had some major effects on the write-up Marimo had to hand in.

"Shirogane Takeru…" She repeated the name of the cadet to no one in particular. Remembering back to his lack of discipline when he called her 'Marimo-chan', twice. But for some reason, The Sergeant felt rather familiar being addressed as such by a man she should had never met before.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Shirogane's room**

 _Kasumi, Kasumi. Summoning space mind reader Kasumi._

" _Yashiro Kasumi, reporting for duty._ " The qt bunny girl answered to my thought call almost on the dot.

 _whacha doing right now?_

" _I'm having a conversation with Sumika-san._ "

 _About what?_

" _Whether the cars in the movie Cars buy life insurance or car insurance._ "

 _Yo… deep stuff right there._

" _It's certainly an extremely puzzling puzzlement indeed, I can structure reasonable arguments for both sides of the debate._ "

 _Yeah, yeah… that's great… so you wanna come over and exchange a quantity of consensual intercourse in the missionary position for the pure purpose of reproduction?_

"… _Another time, Takeru-san._ " Interesting long pause between the question and the reply.

 **Training field**

'The twenty-third of October 2001 has always been the same day.' Most people would agree to that sentence, as odd-sounding as it was. I too couldn't find ways to disprove that statement despite being a bit more of a special case, the patterns still existed in our chaotic world, and that was one of its scarred beauty.

A lone slender figure strode with haste under the watchful gaze of that night's bright moon, her thin ponytail was doing its usual dangling behind her back as she continued her rhythmed breathing while running across the track. Such magnificence was her aspect, a beautiful warrior bound by the fate of her blood.

"Hm? Oh, Shirogane." Meiya greeted me, our positions were similar to yesterday.

"Mitsurugi… Meiya."

"Yes, Shirogane Takeru?"

"How ye' holding up, B?" A dead look was what Meiya sent back my way.

"I stand unsure whether your inquiry deserves a meaningful reply." She couldn't be anymore correct with that assumption.

"Well, try?"

"I… er… refuse. No." There was an attempt.

"Okay… okay… then… what're you doing out here? Some kinda punishment?" Awkwardly, I propelled our discussion onto its traditional path. Some days even I couldn't think of a smooth transition.

"Of course not. I am training on my own. This is part of my daily routine."

"Hm, Is that so."

"I wish to become an Eishi as soon as possible." Meiya announced her goal out of the blue.

"Why's that?"

"My reason is quite ordinary… I want to protect something."

"I see. Do you mind telling me what that is?"

"…This planet… the people of this country… and Japan as a nation."

"That's a tall order, girl. Also, that's three things."

"A nit-picker, would that be you, Shirogane?" I didn't particularly want to confirm or deny her narrative.

"…You really are beautiful, Meiya…"

I couldn't help but admire her will. So strong, so righteous. One lone soldier fighting for the sake of her country, for the people of her country. The simplicity of her dream so perfectly contradicted by her ineffectual position, without outside interference, that fetal wish was destined to be crushed under the weight of reality.

"T-T-Takeru! What do you mean beautiful?" Meiya shaded her face with a light red. Even going out of her way to call me by my preferred name, she really disliked losing.

"Your ideals, Meiya. Of course yourself is also a very pretty person, remember I said that." Her face blushed deeper in crimson, my smooth talking was apparently making a retaliation.

"Shirogane, do y—"

"Just Takeru is fine, I'm not going to stop calling you Meiya, so." No one could get away from my over familiarity.

"Takeru, then. Do you have something you want to protect?"

"Yeah, Yeah I do." That should be the correct answer.

"May I ask what?" In some ways, I had been avoiding thinking about this question, it was uncomfortably annoying to put that idea into words.

"…Can we- can I like- just sit down for a minute?"

"If you insist." I slowly crossed my legs and found a seat right below, not resenting the quality of the dirt below me. Meiya showed respect by doing the same, she kneeled down and settled her hands onto her legs.

"What I want to protect… it's a boring answer though. It's the world, and humanity. But… how should I say this… it's hard… like harder than beating Contra without dying, I'm not proud to admit to losing…"

"Takeru… it is inevitable for you to be met with opposition if you were to reach for a purpose as grand as this. In fact, it will not be uncommon for many to claim this as the most difficult road."

"I know, I know. But it's like- have you ever been playing some video game and you're finally reaching a big boss and it's all dramatic and stuff the first time. But then he wrecks your under-leveled dumbass, again and again, throwing you to the last checkpoint every damn time… it's kinda like that."

The ponderous aura of confusion surrounding Meiya was evidence of the effectiveness of my inexplicable explanation. She shut her eyes in order to devote more concentration to solving the riddle I presented, however it all resulted in a fruitless effort at understanding a concept too far-fetched.

"I… see."

"You've no clue what I'm talking about."

"None at all, no."

"What I'm saying is… I've been in this fight for a long time, it's too long of a time, really. I'm a bit lost on what to do differently, know what I mean? Here's another example; you ever lost a small thing, like a penny or something? You know you lost it and so you start looking for it, right?"

"By all means." I was spewing some really good imagery literature that day, just knowledge dropping like mad.

"You first look in places where it's most likely to be, but boom! Not there. Then you move on to places where you think it might be, boom! Still got nothing. At this point you're just fumbling through stuff at random, sweeping under beds, pushing over shelves, but still, can't find that bitch. What do you do?"

"I would employ the help of others to assist me in my search, unquestionably. When I reach the limitation of one man's physical self, the only option left is to expand the numbers of persons. Of course, that is after locking down the area for my search and removing all obstructions in sight."

"That's… weeeell then…" When it became my turn to act speechless, I wasn't reluctant to be taken back by Meiya's switch and solid reply.

"What do you suppose would happen in my scenario?"

"You'd probably find enough pennies to buy an ice-cream… alright." And there went my cash money example, 2001-2001.

"I assume this is the limitation of your simplified case study. However, it is to my belief you are experiencing a conflict others cannot imagine easily."

 _This chick's good… really outplayed here. But now I think about it, I never told Meiya anything about my time-travelling superpowers… maybe…_ As I ponder a direction to take in my mind, Meiya was boringly doodling circles into the dirt.

"Hey, girl, you wanna see something cool?"

"Depends, Takeru. Am I allowed to see it?"

"Ye, boy. Have a look at this." I clumsily pulled out the envelope stating my rank privilege and shoved in Meiya's delicate face.

"Takeru, you are a…" After Meiya carefully inspected the few pages, she appeared rightfully fluttered for a response.

"Now, whatever you're thinking of doing, don't do it. There's a reason I'm not flying around earning medals, and I want to keep it that way."

"Right- understood, sir." I'd be surprised if I wasn't the only one with goosebumps running up my back.

"…Aaagra… don't, hella weird."

"Agreed. So, I must ask, Takeru, why are you amidst the cadets if your true nature is that of a capable pilot?"

"I'm a… on extended vacation, or something similar. I'm at the part where after blowing a day, you still can't beat that boss and really just wanna go do some side-quests. And I've been kinda doing that for some time now, I actually just tackled the boss again although; guess what, didn't win."

"…To my comprehension, you seem to be stuck in quite a dead-lock, if I may be so blunt." Meiya stuck a single finger inches away from my face, her dauntless carriage seemed to be mocking my difficult clarification.

"Yeah… sure, you basically got it. And I just don't want to put any effort into anything, it's too much a pain in the ass to try because I'll probably get fuc— it'll just be unpleasant."

"So… you're here to run away?"

Those words, the way she said it, her expression when she said it; all of it was so unbelievably infuriating. I couldn't right out discredit her allegation for it held more truth than lies, but nevertheless was irritating to have the facts forced onto me.

"Damn girl, why you gotta put it like that? I said I'm taking a break, right? When the time comes, you'll see how much I can wrecks them bad kids."

"Takeru! That is unrelated to our current situation! If you are truly a fully enlisted soldier, why are you wasting your potential amongst us cadets? I wish to became an Eishi as soon as possible to gain that power which you already own and are currently discarding!"

"Hey, hey watch your mouth, Mitsurugi! Standard working hours a week is forty and I haven't been on paid leave since the first White House got burned down!" Meiya withdrew a couple centimetres away as I unintentionally raised my voice, her next expression was a mix of worry and qualm.

"I didn't mean… please accept my apologies, 1st Lieutenant Shirogane! I was not my intention to anger you in any form!"

"Ahhh… no worries, Meiya. And drop the rank, please. It bothers me a bit, you see. I just errr… don't feel motivated, that's right. I've seen many of my friends die… lots of times. Of course, I've gotten over it eventually, but it's like… I'm all out of tricks left in the bag." Starting to sound like a broken tape-recorder, I was.

"However, Takeru. There is still hope left, is there not? For you stand before me as a living man, capable of changing our fluctuating destiny even if your will has been demoralized by defeat. You do not have the right to declare our future; no man has. That is why we fight, it is only through our struggle can a path to victory be sought."

"That I get, for sure. But it's just…"

"If it is motivation you seek, I can certainly provide. After all, I too am a fellow soldier walking alongside you through this journey. The past I am powerless to change, however you cannot surrender the future you have yet to strive for. It is for that the future is unknown it still can contain hope."

"A man is not defeated until he sees that as the only truth, I will not allow our fight to be over before it begin."

The single thread of unbreakable conviction emerging from the heart of this loyal girl was looming triumphantly over my pool of sadness, it was this time I realized another strategy still existed in this prison of time.

My way of thinking had been rigid and blinded me to methods someone with a fresh viewpoint could easily notice. I fought together with my squad of comrades for years on end, but perhaps I never once relied on them for anything more than combat.

It was scary; the thought of losing anyone I cared for and losing my progression during any loops. So I did all I could to keep them away from danger, where I couldn't I taught them how to best protect themselves. To be strong Eishis not for victory, but survival.

Maybe that wasn't the right decision, maybe I should aim for a different bearing.

"Meiya… I think you're actually onto something… I feel- err… so enlightened."

"It brings me pleasure for my amateur guidance to be of assistance in your crisis… however, if this draws the curtains on your predicament, I have a matter for you to answer."

All of a sudden, Meiya's iron grip took a hold of my hands as she closed the distance between my gaping mouth and her ripe lips almost instantaneously. Her navy-blue eyes were gleaming a ray of radiant resolve into my dark pupils. The entire interaction took me completely by surprise, her behaviour was too assertive in comparison to her past self.

"Meiya, what are you…"

"T-Takeru… I-I must ask you…" As impressive as it was, her forceful personality only lasted for a mere second. Meiya's hold on my fingers weakened when she was tempted to turn away in a shyly red blush, however the girl powered on and again connected our sight.

In the warm heat emanated from her silky palms I found a nostalgic sense of longing for her affection. Meiya was the girl who had always stood valiantly in the front by my side, protecting me from deadly wrath of my foes and supporting me from destructive tendencies of my own. Over the years, we had shared limitless moments of intimacy as we tread through a sea of blood lost by those we couldn't save; sometimes being the closest friends and others being partners in life.

So even if the Meiya before me was devoid of any of those qualities which blossomed along the time I spent with her, I couldn't push away the person who accompanied me across so many worlds.

"Shirogane Takeru… have we met?"

"…Clarify?"

"I… do not believe our first introduction to each other was today, you are not a man I can recognize as a stranger to my eyes. Tell me, do I know you?"

It was a question impossible for me to tell the truth, however lying to her demanded more skewered courage of me than I could afford. Evading her devoted curiosity using fictitious means was my best under those circumstances, Meiya alone was someone I promised not to deceive.

"…It wasn't here… or now, but I do know you, Meiya. Not in the way you'd think though, so there really isn't any need to worry about it."

"I see, I see. In that case, I shall cease to pursue any further, you lived the life of a troubled man, Shirogane Takeru. The secrecy of your truthful rank shall lay forever a mystery in my heart, fear not for the prodding ears of others, for they will not receive any hint from my mouth."

"That's… reassuring, Meiya. Thank you for that. I'm not ashamed for my reason on being with you guys, but now I'm gonna try to make up for not being in the front by being somewhere else… wait no."

 _Where I should be is where my brain's at._

"~Huhuhu… no worries, your cryptic message is well received. I look forward to working with you, fellow Cadet Shirogane Takeru." Her smile, the genuine smile I was so fond of finally reunited with her countenance.

"That sounds a bit insulting…"

"Then perhaps it is vital to race your way up the ranks." Leaving me off with a single pat on my shoulder, Meiya stylishly disappeared in the direction of the barracks.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Mitsurugi's room**

The running shower splashing lukewarm water onto her bear back shielded her mind from indistinctive noises and focused her notion on a logical path, Meiya wondered to herself where or when did Shirogane Takeru first intruded her fleeting memories and why those hazy moments were the happiest she ever had.

—

 **Updated on 28/05/2017**

 **Author's note**

It's weird rewriting an entire chapter and then uploading it to what everyone should think is a dead story. Thought it was a new chapter? get bamboozled.

I not really dead or anything, it's actually very unlikely for the author of any story you follow to die, I think it's statically proven how unlikely it is for someone that's not your immediate relative to die if you're below a certain age. Anyway, gaming a lot, studying a lot, writing not very a lot.

This chapter's pretty good if I so say myself, so you know that's the iron truth of the universe, although let me know if the universe made a mistake somewhere though. Review and stuff if you want to, not like I deserve anything for reupload.

BETA done by chad001


	3. Ch3: Center Axis Relock

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **October 24, 2001**

 **Yokohama Base classroom**

" _C'mon daddy, let's go daddy, you're my only dicky daddy._ " Kasumi's voice; it echoed.

" _Daddy be nimble, daddy be quick, daddy give me all eight inches of your dick._ " In a sing-song voice she rhymed.

" _One cummy, two cummies, three cummies, four, I'm daddy's princess but also a whore._ " A distinct fragrance flourished, a woman's smell.

—

"Cadet Shirogane Takeru! What in the world do you think you're doing!?"

"…Mhmmm~ fuck off… Kasumi you slut… call me pedo one more time and I'll fuck you raw in the ass…" As legitimate of a threat as any, Kasumi would know. Also, it was allowed since she was actually over two hundred years old or something.

A soothing period of lull was remarkably preferable in the wake of my questionable dream. Feeling good really was all that mattered.

"SHIROGANE TAKERU! ATTENTION!"

Ruthlessly ripped away from my uncomfortable yet kindling dream, Marimo-chan's mad screech tore away any resemblance my poor self had to a man who got a good afternoon's nap on his desk while carelessly ignoring some seriously boring lectures about why we shouldn't hold rifles upside-down.

 _Oh joy, I fuckin' love mornings right around lunch time._

—

 _Kasumi! Pick up the phone!_ I was anxious to learn the truth behind today's strange dream.

"Shirogane-san, that was amazing! Even though you were completely dozing off and talking in your sleep!"

"Yes, I was surprised as well. For certain my prediction was for some form of punishment to be laid upon you for not indulging in Instructor Jinguuji's lesson." Meiya added, she and Tama were the first to greet me after our class session ran its course.

"Sure, sure."

 _KASUMI~! You little dipshit I know you're out there somewhere!_

"I thought it was a pretty obvious answer, destroying the equipment would be unnecessary."

"Perhaps so, Sakaki. Nonetheless, Takeru's adaptivity and creativity when it came to reusing the enemy's facility instead of destroying it was quite a stroke of relative cleverness."

"…Not listening, smart guy?" Ayamine prodded me twice on the arm to collect my attention on the group's conversation.

"Yeah, what?"

"We were all saying how amazing you were when Instructor Jinguuji asked you the question!" Tamase delightfully praised my nimble thinking.

"Alright whatever, so do you think it's a wet dream if I don't blow my load?" So far during that day, all I really dwelled over was how I dreamt of Kasumi acting like a total slut, nothing else came close in terms of interest for me.

"Hum? What did you say, Shirogane-san?" Drawn by my barely audible whisper, the girls turned to grace me with their focus in anticipation for me to repeat myself.

"…Nothing, not a peep. Don't worry about it." There was no plan for me to disclose my personal struggle beyond the first mention.

"Well then, the next assignment in our schedule is field stripping, shall we proceed?" The blue-haired girl intended on leading our way to the next location.

"Field stripping… I can strip a lot of things in the field."

"Wai- wha…?" Ayamine missed her chance to get to know me better.

—

 _We really overuse the prefix 'Type' too much in this world. Really though, do believe it's mostly us Asians who do this shit. Type- 84, 94, 97, 00, 74, 77… literally any two-digit number has a 'Type' version… fuck imagination I guess._

"C'mon sit still and get assembled, you bitch." The Type-91 assault rifle which was basically a domestic rip-off of the TAR-21 refused to be constructed in my delicate hands, so all it was getting was less delicacy as I fumbled through each of its aluminium components.

"Finished." I raised my hand to signal the completion of another mundane task.

"Impossible…" Chizuru unintentionally mumbled her bemused remark.

"Huh? Done already? You did this alone, Shirogane?"

"No, ma'am. I had my mini cat-maids fix the gun while I slept, they're kinda like the Shoemaker's elves, but cuter and gay."

Another vein popped on Marimo-chan's aging forehead when she came over closer into view, not saying she was growing away from her younger days because the angry Sergeant was still very much attractive to any man with a sensible head.

"Shirogane! You're in for a rude awakening if you think this attitude can get you anywhere in the military!" The way she worded her warning really left me with no choice other than to lay down and take it.

"Tch… sorry, ma'am. I'm not used to this military thing."

"I understand you just recently got drafted but try your best to cope with your new life! You're not going back to being a kid anytime soon, Cadet!" Realistically, Marimo was one of the most understanding Drill Sergeants to ever grace the earth.

"I apologize."

"Do your best to fix that habit of yours, Shirogane. It's the biggest flaw I see in you."

"I hear you, ma'am."

"Anyway, that was two minutes, thirty-one seconds. Let me take a look, Cadet." So, I willingly submitted the empty rifle for Marimo to fiddle around with for a good dozen seconds, looked like fun.

"…Nothing appears out of order… you've done this before, Shirogane?"

"Relatively, yeah. I guess I'm somewhat of a firearm enthusiast, always played with guns as a kid. I'm really excited about getting to use them for a good cause, actually." Marimo-chan skimmed me an accepting glance, apparently not suspecting a half-spurious tale.

"I see… very well, those skills of yours will eventually become second nature to you. And the rest of you as well! Until now, Ayamine held the record of six minutes and seventeen seconds. But that isn't really worth discussing at this point, make sure to practice and reach his level!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Together the Squadron answered as one voice, but whether their hearts had set the same goal in sight remained to be seen.

"I don't buy it… Shirogane's cheating… probably has a finished one somewhere hidden." Someone's heart was already miles away from the right place.

"Ayamine, I find your baseless accusation to be refutable and reproachable." Speaking as sophisticated as someone of her status would, Meiya defended me against the ridicule of our team's bully.

"No, no, she's got me good. I do have a backup, it's just up my ass and around the corner. Would the kind lady like to check?"

"Shirogane, bend over." Some real courage was coming from the expressionless girl, Ayamine did hate losing as much as everyone else.

"Enough! Focus on your task at hand!" The termination of our momentary quarrel came at the order of the instructing Sergeant.

 **PX**

"You really are incredible, Shirogane-san!" Tama, always the first to praise others.

"Of course I am. You could say that… ~I'm the best…! ~around!" Frankly, there were lots of things I was afraid of keeping me down, but a man doesn't have to constantly confront his fear, or in my case, ever.

"And he is very self-assured in his skills. Truthfully, a man who sees one's own value and acts upon that edge shall be the one to reap the profit of his own confidence." I wasn't too sure if those words meant what Meiya thought they meant, nevertheless, she was always the one to speak cryptically about everything any anything.

"You really are very proud, but not without reason. I may not like it, but you're far better than the rest of us…" How nice of Class rep to admit.

"You are… special, in a good way too… that's rare." And an equally rare compliment from Ayamine.

"Gotta say I'm glad y'all understand how much better I am. But that won't do us any good as a team, you girls should step up your game and get on my level." In retrospect, maybe using too much of that 'cool-kids speak' around these relative bumpkins wasn't the smartest of ideas, and that was comparably tame too.

"Shirogane-san talks funny… hehe."

"We will try our best as well. This won't last forever, you know. We'll beat you someday." Class rep declared a challenge for my MVP spot.

"Haha… maybe, eventually." I held absolutely no intention to hamper their progress in growing to become proficient soldiers if that was the aspiration they set for themselves to reach, perhaps it just took a bit of encouragement for them to set that goal.

"Your fateful arrival has affected the Squadron greatly… do not betray our heartfelt trust by allowing yourself be put asunder. Although there lays assurance in my chest knowing that is a baseless assumption."

"Right… not gonna do the thing you're telling me not to do, Meiya. You know it…" My nod towards Meiya contained nothing but the purest understanding of her advice and faith.

"Aiming too high, aiming too high."

"But Mitsurugi's right. If you can raise the bar for the entire squad, we'll have a much better chance of passing the Comprehensive Combat Skill Evaluation."

"The whatever whatever skills whatever test, that's the thing you ladies failed last time, right?" Stealing the optimism away from the faces of these girls was about as easy as one could imagine.

"Yes, we already failed once, a second failure will be the last…" Class rep reconfirmed for me.

"I'm going to ask you guys now, how did you muck it up last time?" To their defence, it would bring the downfall of just about anyone if their mistake was so rashly mentioned. Not one pair of eyes raised up to meet mine as each individual sat in grim silence to pass onward the blame of their own incompetence.

 _Here we go, boys._

"Squad leader Sakaki here… she believed we had a suicide pact, turns out she's mistaken…" Finally, Ayamine picked Chizuru as her target of a guilt trip.

"What!? So you're just gonna pin it all on me then!?"

"No… we should totally blame the landmine that you led us into…"

"Wha- do you…! Ayamine!"

"-We should just take this problem… and PUSH IT SOMEWHERE ELSE!" A properly referenced macro put an end to the endless bickering between our team's number one trouble-making pair.

"No, seriously. It's not your fault, you only lead; not your fault, you just follow orders; not your fault because you have to be the sniper; also not your fault, can't blame the chick with the sword, can't be Yoroi's fault since she's literally dead, even then. It's probably my fault, right? I should've enlisted half a year earlier to help you lads."

I wasn't certain if their dismay was born from my pushy attitude or from the painfully accurate hypothesis of their inner thoughts at work. Nonetheless, it grew clear how basic the cause of their last failing was, terrible teamwork was always the hardest for a team to admit.

"…How did you know… I had a sword?"

"Not right now, Meiya… let me finish."

"Right… of course."

"Fortunately, what we have is time. The thing is still like- ninety days away and it won't do any good if we panic now. I don't think it's necessary to highlight what could be the obvious culprit at work here that's causing this disruption, so let's all just reflect on what this thing is and think of ways to fix it, yeah?"

Minutes passed as the tension in the air withered away for the girls to truly appreciate the core of my half-baked message. Our malfunction wasn't something to easily mend overnight, but my experience in the past had taught me to be really grateful that the passage of time wasn't based on perspective.

However, the dreadful atmosphere lasted too long even for my liking.

"Ugggrh… now it's all weird… give me something else here, c'mon."

"So… Shirogane-san… you gave me a nickname yesterday, right?" How fortunate for me the course of history decided to bless me with a randomly selected outcome which just happened to perfectly be the topic of discussion I wanted to bring up.

"Factual, Tama. And you're not the only special one here. We got Class rep here, that's all good. There's Kei the Katty Karry Kappa of Kit-Kat. And then Meiya… just Meiya."

"Do I look like a class representative? You guys think I look like one too?"

"Mine is ordinary… what is this anomalous sensation of disappointment?"

"Mine is garbage… Shirogane, jump off the roof."

 _Sounded like someone is unpleased with my decision, too bad we lived under a Totalitarian State, population, me._

"Then Ayamine you'll be; too lazy to reconsider I am."

"Whatever… Takeru, that's you, Takeru." So the dark-haired young lady wasn't deaf, who'd thunk.

"I for one do not object advancing onto a forename bases with everybody present, it stands to be a more mellow and simplified method of addressing one another. You must also be appealed by the same standard, Takeru."

 _Mellow and simplified, she said. Mellow and simply._

"Guess we're going to call you Takeru then, you're okay with that, right? Not like you have the ground to say no."

"Then I'll try to do the same as well… Shiro- I mean Takeru-san!- Sorry! I'll try again, Takeru… san!- Takeru-san- …Shiroga— Uuuuhhhh~!" The cat-girl was repeating my name so much it didn't sound like a word anymore.

"Looks good, girls. We don't have any issues, do we?"

" _Takeru-chan! TAKERU-CHAN TAKERU-CHAN! Come hang out with Kasumi-chan and me~! We got the good stuff!_ " The more refined and logical of the young women definitely shared no disagreement to our naming arrangement. It was the problem child that had a problem.

 _What do you want from me, woman? And why didn't Kasumi answer to me earlier?_

" _Whaaaaa~! Don't be cray-cray Takeru-chan! And the good stuff is the gooooood stuff~!_ "

 _Woman you're literally disabled… fine, be there in ten._

" _Kay-kay! Be there or be square!_ "

 _Don't say that! Jesus, don't fucking say that one! I hate it so much! It makes no fucking sense!_ Some people could argue I was too aggravated by the slightest thing, and those people aggravated the hell out of me.

"Alright, girls… I got this thing that needs to be taken care of… it's kinda bad and kinda annoying. So I'm just bouncing outta here right now like the wind."

"Huh? What do you mean- Hey! Takeru, where in the world are you going!?" The squad might have deserved a sooner warning than what I delivered, but I wasn't new to letting down expectations.

"Nope sorry, gotta go faaaaaaaast~!"

 **Brain room**

"Yaaaashiro~ Kaaaasumi~! Wooooha~!" If those doors leading into the brain chamber didn't conveniently slide open I sure as shit would have knocked them down with a sledgehammer.

"Takeru-san… I sense dark thoughts amidst your mind… I implore you to not act irrationally in accordance to your baser impulses and- ~ahhhaahh~ stop… stop… stop please." As tempting as her cutter board chest was to fondle, they didn't provide me with the leisure and fulfillment of a pair of real bouncy breasts.

"Takeru-san is a class A sexual deviant… and a wanted pedophile in seven different countries."

"Huh, didn't know you can tell jokes, Kasumi. That one's pretty good too, I'm impressed."

"…Yes, a joke. A subject which causes amusement and laughter, a joke." The implications behind her words surely were just to re-educate me on the meaning of the noun 'joke', I couldn't think of any other reasons she'd say something like that.

" _Ah… Takeru-chan! Look at you, smart, athletic, handsome and charming. If only you're not such a disgusting, filthy pervert with a completely sickened mind thinking of nothing but the vilest deeds you'd be like- the perfect husbando!_ " Interjecting into a conversation only meant for two, Sumika inputted her very biased and unethical opinion of me.

 _Okay, and what does that say about you, woman? You wanna tell me it's not you it's me?_

" _Hmm… well, ~Lucky for you, that's what I like, ~that's what I like._ " An un-mistaken vibe told me Sumika was referencing to something, but the essence of her message was lost to me.

 _I don't… I don't understand it._

" _Ohmygod~! How do you not remember this, Takeru-chan! It's only two decades away! I swear every time we survive just a bit longer you fill your dumb head with nothing but those stupid memes!_ "

 _How dare you, they're dank memes._

" _Stupid dank memes! If you just remember the blueprint to a super TSF or something we'll be blasting away at the aliens! Useless, useless! USELESS!_ " How pleasant, Sumika really was everything a man could want in a girl.

 _Actually stop, woman. I won't waste my time bitching with you like an old married couple, you called me here for something, what is it?_

" _Oooooh, yeeeeeah! Totally forgot! Sensei said I'll be outta this pod tomorrow! Well, it's actually tonight but after midnight so technically tomorrow._ " Yuuko-sensei did make this estimation not too long ago, having Sumika with me in physical form this early was a clear sign of fine fortune.

 _Good, very good. You can do all the fun stuff a normal person would do on a military base, can't wait. Is there anything you're looking forward to? Food, I guess?_

" _I dunno kinda wanna shoot a gun at things. Fly a TSF, basically stuff you'll be doing soon, Takeru-chan. And now I can be there too!_ "

 _Hold on, are you gonna enlist? Like doing all the things I'll be doing?_ I honestly couldn't remember if Sumika ever received the treatment of a regular soldier on Yokohama Base. She was an exceedingly proficient Eishi, that I could testify for, but actually flying with us would be a problematic situation.

" _Wow, it's like you said the exact same words I literally JUST SAID! YES! I'll be enlisting-enlisting to be in your Squadron! And Kasumi-chan too! It's gonna be greeeeat!_ "

Were I to consider myself unready for this news, I'd be more amazed than dismayed. It was never my intention to have Sumika or Kasumi fighting alongside me on those bloody battlefields where the line between life and death would always be drowned out by the never-ending echoes of gunshots. However, they were proposing an exchange; their safety and shelter for shortening my strenuous path on achieving our dream, and that objectively wasn't a bad deal.

… _To be honest, I've so many questions I want to ask. But I guess I shouldn't be surprised really. Tell me this, was it because what Meiya said?_ My reply to her energetic declaration was moderately sincere and solemn, Sumika picked that up as the hint to drop her humorous mood.

" _Yesterday was a calm night, I could hear every word two you spoke… and Meiya-san's right, I've neglected you to fighting this fight alone, that isn't right. We were all so happy when I first remembered the past, I thought we could finally change something… anything about the future. Even if it wasn't enough then, I shouldn't have grown to be so passive._ "

"We're with you together, Takeru-san, always and forever. We'll prove that there's weight behind our decision. We'll make sure everything works out, we promise." Kasumi's snowy skin still leaked the same splinting cold by every touch of her pale hands, but that coldness didn't feel too bad in my own palm.

 _You girls… you girls are alright, I ever tell you that? I… errm… am glad, just glad._

" _But are you feeling any love, Takeru-chan!? Hu-hu? How about saying you love us?_ " Was it a mental disability that wouldn't let Sumika hold a serious front for more than three seconds? I wanted to guess yes.

 _I'll allow you both to fall under the impression of that POV, I'm a generous guy, totally_.

" _Wow… wow I feel so blessed, wow~ I'm like a stripper who just got tipped a hundred-dollar bill between my cleavage…woohoo._ " Unexpectedly detailed and refined illustration.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Being waiting for you, Shirogane. Here, first thing first." Yuuko-sensei hurled something my way in an attempt to commit first-degree murder.

"Ah, thanks, sensei. I knew this would arrive first." I observed the lighter that sensei gave me. It was a world war two replica by Zippo. I saw no faults in it, there was a button I'd press and fire would come out, what more could I want in a lighter?

"I don't care what you wanna do with that thing, but if you're gonna smoke don't do it indoors, yeah?"

"What? Me? No, no, nope, never, okay maybe once."

"No, I actually don't care, Shirogane. You're not a kid, and even if you are, you're not my kid. Anything, you're like my genie. And so far, you've been granting my wishes to a certain extent which makes me willing to get you all this stuff you want."

"So you're saying we're like friends with benefits without benefits."

"Sure, basically. Maybe that'll change, maybe not." I wasn't quite sure which part of the whole 'benefit' thing was undergoing development.

"Moving on, here is a very exciting news for you. If all goes according to plan, I can get the 00 Unit up and running tomorrow morning." To represent her superiority, Yuuko-sensei smiled with glee as she informed me of our little project's progress.

"I was told that by Sum- the 00 Unit herself, yeah. Hey, that's pretty good, four days since my arrival and you've already become the world's greatest scientist." Almost let Sumika's name slip out under my tongue, that was whole other can of worms I didn't want to bother for the time being.

"I've always been the world's greatest scientist, I'm just proving that right now. Anyway, it'll be late during the night so just be there. You'll be there, right?"

"Actually no. I don't really care about you killing a brain and uploading it into an android, seen it plenty of times. Also, I'm a bit sensitive about this matter, since technically she's dying and being reborn… kinda."

"I see… understandable, Shirogane. Suit yourself." Didn't seem sensei was even a tiny bit interested in my affairs, couldn't really blame her but didn't mean it wasn't a disappointment.

"I do wonder though, what will you have the 00 Unit do once she's outta there?"

"I don't know, I'll have to run the stability test, compatibility test, some form of intelligence test too. After that's done, she'll have to get comfortable here. If her mind is as functional as you claim, she can be my assistant." That didn't sound awfully terrible as Sumika's role, normally that would be her future for a couple of months.

"She might not really agree to that. But hey, it's none of my business. Although Kasumi does want to talk with you about that stuff." Imagining the scenario where Sumika couldn't convince Yuuko-sensei to release her out to the wild had its merits as a piece of comedy.

"I'll see to it, anything else?"

"Nah, not really. We have plenty of relaxing days ahead of us. Thanks to you rushing your work so hard, there will be lots of quiet, before the storm."

"If you're leaving don't expect me to see you to the door." And so it was time for my departure.

"Oh, no. I wouldn't dare."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

Kouzuki Yuuko was on her way to the 00 Unit's housing, having nothing else more important to do she decided to honour her promise to the Causality Conductor. Shirogane's existence certainly was an incredible save for Yuuko's project. Looking over the improved theory, there hardly was a possibility of her herself renovating her existing formula to achieve the perfect theory before the deadline.

As the 00 Unit was fully developed, the only task left was to transfer the mind to the body, which should be an easy step that was nigh impossible to fail. The simple reason of why Yuuko wasn't finishing it now was because there will be a thirty-second power outage when the procedure starts, and doing it at night would not be wise.

 **Brain room**

After Yuuko swiped her access card through the card reader. The twin doors leading into 00 Unit's room slid themselves out of her way. The figure of Yashiro Kasumi occupied the forefront of Yuuko's vision as she stood motionlessly like a log while the same aloof expression was there to greet the professor.

"Yashiro, good evening to you."

"Professor Kouzuki, I have something to ask you for." A blunt and straightforward demand, one not normally associated with the discreet Yashiro.

"Then speak, what do you want."

"For me and the 00 Unit to enlist in the 207th training Squadron." As far as requests go, this one wasn't unforeseen by Yuuko.

"Rejected, won't happen, Yashiro." Donning her usual cold appearance without a spark of emotion, Alternative III's experimental clone stared directly into the irises of Kouzuki Yuuko with only periodical blinks to break their connection.

"The 00 Unit won't be pleased by your rather rash decision, Professor. She doesn't take well to rejection, and neither do I."

"What? I don't think your feelings are grand enough to come into this equation. I don't even know why the two of you want to go to battle, tired of living a sheltered life? Want to see how comfy your early graves are?" Yuuko realized her behaviour was grumpier than she believed, maybe it was the way Yashiro ordered her that was intolerable.

"We want to help Takeru-san, he's in a vulnerable state and we think we should be there for him." Yuuko obviously would've guessed Shirogane was the source of all her extended trouble, but still, he was worth that extra mile.

"So now he's having emotional issues? Should've known the young man was too perfect to be true. Did he ask you of this? For you and the 00 Unit to help him?"

"No, we volunteered. It was what we should've done a long time ago. It's not fair for him to be the only one fighting, we have to do our part too."

The pessimistic side of Yuuko was firm in telling herself to wave off Yashiro's absurd demand and return to actual work. However, that didn't sit right with her humane self. Were there still any humanity left in the genius scientist, this definitely was a test for her heart.

"Listen here, Yashiro… it's not as if I don't sympathize with Shirogane's problems, he's done some great things for me and I expect him to keep doing great things. But what I got going on here is bigger than the two of us, I won't risk you and the 00 Unit to heal his wounds, that's not how the world works."

The downcast gaze of Yashiro was depressingly dispirited, Yuuko's heart ached at the poor sight of the Esper's sadness. Nevertheless, her demand wasn't a topic to be haggled with, she already staked everything on the success of Alternative IV, there was no room for error in the formation of her plan.

"I see that I myself cannot convince you, Professor. But the 00 Unit thinks otherwise." Her new disclosure, on the other hand, that caught Yuuko's attention like moths to a light.

"Oooh, now that's very interesting… Are you saying the 00 Unit can express itself with you as its medium? That's something you could've led with, now speak. I want to hear what it says." A simple nod from Yashiro escalated Yuuko's curiosity to a new height.

"-Hmm… I dunno, sensei. Calling me an 'it'? Kinda hurt by how cold you're, you know? I mean I do know I'm kinda only a brain in a tube and am gonna die pretty soon to become a robot brain in a brain, but stillllllll~. I've my ego as a girl, okay? Don't be so hurtful now." While Yashiro's paraphrase delivered the core message of the 00 Unit's personality, it did not express that same enthusiasm.

"Well… well, well, well. What do you know, I never thought I'll say it, but you exceed my expectations… Kagami… Sumika. For a 'person'… like you to react and behave so regularly as only a brain, I'm impressed, truly." A wry smirk crept its way across Kouzuki Yuuko's mouth, the excitement of seeing her research bearing fruit in such a dramatic manner was too vast to be held back as an expression.

"Thank you, thank you, Kouzuki-sensei. I'm thankful to you for giving me a chance, not too sure about the killing my brain part, but I'll manage. In some way, I'm happy to have a real body, being in here just makes my blood boil and my eyes red." Words spoke peculiarly completely opposite to Yashiro's style did not distract Yuuko from the heavy undertone of Kagami's words.

"I promise you, Kagami Sumika, the sunlight will bounce off your synthetic skin in no time. But anyway, you said you want to try to convince me to let you join Shirogane, now convince me."

"Heh… I won't say it's exactly convincing, I think this's what they call an offer you can't refuse. I just won't work for you if you don't let me do what I want, I feel a bit bad, honestly. But I'll get what I want." The threat suggested by an entirely sentient and intelligent 00 Unit stung Yuuko in a weak point she didn't want to admit.

"I'd like you to expand on that… persuasion, Kagami Sumika."

"Ohh, it's easy, sensei. You need me far more than I'll ever need you. Once I'm outta this pod how hard do you think it is to take off this silly tie with your microchip limiter whatever thing it's called? You'll hold no rule over me, sensei, I won't be controlled." The 00 Unit's blackmail for a possibility of treason was as ridiculous as it came, however being a scientist who never discarded a theory without testing, Yuuko knew there was nothing stopping Kagami from refusing her commands.

"Threatening me like that… Kagami Sumika… You might not even make it out of that tube."

"That's fine too, really, I'm okay with that. So Takeru-chan will just shoot himself and spin the RNG wheel again, he'll never trust you more than he does me… and that's a Snapple Real Fact. But for you though, what will the poor Professor Kouzuki Yuuko do if her Alternative IV goes up in flames like the Hindenburg? I think the answer is still up; as in space."

Yuuko needed no reminder of Shirogane's bizarre story on time travel which she only reluctantly accepted, but here the 00 Unit itself was telling her about a future yet to arrive and that worried Yuuko no matter how much she hated being out of control.

"So the once genius professor Kouzuki will waste her life away on a foreign planet reeking in the smell of alcohol day in and day out, lamenting how she failed to bring about the child whose destiny it was to give humanity hope… what a tragic tale."

"…I like that prediction of yours, Kagami. Shirogane told you that in one of your 'loops'?"

"Who knows? There're so many ways things could go wrong, I won't be the least bit surprised if something totally out of the blue happens and turn your plan upside down. 'The only certainty is that nothing is certain', is that the quote? I remember it from a book."

" _Naturalis Historia_ , a book by Pliny The Elder, he's a Roman Author." Yuuko was never a fan of history books during her youth, she always had her sight set on the future, not the past. That wasn't a habit she was seeking to abandon anytime soon.

"Right, right. He's the one that said ' _fortēs Fortūna adiuvat_ ', 'fortune favours the brave'… wait, or was that from an older play? I can't really remember." The off-topic babble could be seen as nothing other than the 00 Unit's frisky gloat.

"…Kagami Sumika, you know, I like you. I really do like you, you're someone who knows what they want and how to get it. You are aggressive and driven in satisfying your desire."

"Thanks, sensei. Although Takeru-chan just calls me spoiled."

 **Shirogane's room**

 **October 25, 2001**

 _What did I ever do to deserve this._

"Takeru-san, morning is the most important time of the day." Who ever imagined that two little hands could be responsible for so much devastation, to a man's peaceful sleep.

"More like… more like the most… the most dick-sucking time of the day, now shoo, shoo… pls."

"Takeru-san, is a morning fellatio something that could encourage you to wake up?"

"Not when you've to ask me… Kasumi, also I don't fuck kids, except for when I do, but right now I don't, so get." The docile warmth of Kasumi's body was climbing itself into my sheet as I spent the minimum amount of energy to hold down my last of line of defence.

"Takeru-san, have you masturbated anytime during this new loop?" Always the one with the most essential questions, that Kasumi.

"No, wasn't in the mood. And I still am not, so stop trying to seduce me already, woman! I woke! Gonna stay woke so stop raping me with your eyes."

"But daddy said if their eyes turn into hearts it won't be categorized as rape."

"Stop… I can't right now, just no… and I fucking knew it was you." The core difference between my sex jokes and hers were that my emphasis was on 'joke' and hers was on 'sex'.

—

I took my time to go through my morning routine after drilling the true, actual meaning of the term 'no means no' into Kasumi's head.

"Good news, Takeru-san. Professor Kouzuki approved of us joining the squad. I will be training together with you now."

"Huh, how about that. So Sumika did convince sensei to let you two run wild." I was positively pleased by said news.

"I would not assess the method as a conviction."

"That's okay too, we're gonna spend a whole lotta quality time together. I appreciate what you two are doing for me, really."

"No, Takeru-san, you deserve much more than this, we're here to make sure you're properly rewarded for your effort. Henceforth we'll be in your care."

"You got nothing to worry about girl, we're going straight to the finals."

 **Yokohama firing range**

"Squad, regroup!" By the time we arrived at the field, the rest of my team was already set to go.

"207th Squadron assembled!" Class rep called out once everyone gathered.

"Before we start our training today I've a new member I'll introduce to the Squadron. You probably seen her around the base before with the Professor, she's being sent to join our squad, here's Yashiro Kasumi." Marimo-chan swung her arm to direct the attention of the girls to us, mostly to Kasumi who stood as her usual dull self.

"Cadet Yashiro Kasumi, starting now a member of the 207th Training Squadron second class. It's my wish to get along with everyone here and do our best to complete our training as soon as possible." Kasumi saluted the rest of her unit and spoke at length about herself, not something she regularly does without reason.

"Shirogane, come here for a bit." I got called by Marimo-chan as the greeting continued in the background.

"Reporting, Instructor Marimo. What do you want?" She mustered only a sigh, I thought 'Instructor Marimo' was a good compromise between my habits and her preference.

"Shirogane, you know why Yashiro joined the squad? I can understand you being put here with them, but Yashiro? I've to say I have my doubts."

"Well, you know Professor Kouzuki, she's got her own agenda all the time. I know partly what she wants, but she really insisted that only I know." As long as I wasn't lying outright, it didn't have an effect on my conscience.

"Aw, That Yuuk –Professor Kouzuki really is… unrestricted." Unrestricted was a good word to replace whatever she had in mind.

—

From the limited time of which I was present during the girls' conversation, they had taken a liking to Kasumi. Not saying she was someone obnoxious, just that Kasumi's lackluster personality could be a bit of a turn-off. Although the young Russian girl I saw was socializing quite comfortably outside her comfort zone.

"Alright, squad! That's it for the welcome, we're moving onto today's shooting exercise. Yashiro, do you have any experience with firearms?"

"I do."

 _Huuuuuuuuuh? You shot before, Kasumi?_ I was definitely less accepting of this fact than anyone else.

" _Please specify, I've in fact shot many things before._ "

"Very good, be careful not to injure yourself, Yashiro. Join the rest of the Squadron."

"Yes, ma'am." Marimo-chan moved the group along to the range and left me to follow their footsteps as a baffled but cute man.

—

"Pew! Pewpew! Pew! Pew!"

"Shirogane! Stop making those noises!"

"Pow! Powpow! Poooffffff!" That was an RPG.

"SHIROGANE! SHUT UP!" After Marimo-chan denied me a slice of fun during our free practice time, I decided to wander by where Kasumi was improving her marksmanship skills which I didn't even know she had.

"Hey girl, you popping some fools?" She sure looked like it with her shooting glasses on.

"No, Takeru-san, I am firing this Type-91 in burst on full-auto towards the steel target distanced at thirty metres." Why was Kasumi always the fun police?

"But are you pretending you're popping some fools?"

"…I'm pretending I'm firing this Type-91 in burst on full-auto towards the stationary Tangos distanced at thirty metres." No fun allowed said she.

"You know, I wasn't told you can shoot, and this good too."

"I've plenty experience with all forms of firearms, except for LMGs… they're too heavy." Totally understandable.

Her accuracy was absolutely not an attribute I could sweep under the rug at a moment's notice. From thirty metres away, Kasumi almost nailed the bullseye with every bullet. This was incredible by so many different standards, as I didn't even believe she could hold an assault rifle without smacking her toes with it.

"I wonder though, why do you hold the gun like- sideways?" She tilted her rifle at about forty to forty-five degrees to the left, I couldn't declare this as a conventional shooting style since half of the weapon's stock had to be raised above her shoulder for her to see through the iron-sight.

"I'm used to an offset red-dot sight, it doesn't feel right to hold the gun straight."

"At this distance? You use a canted sight at this range? What scope do you even have?"

It wasn't irregular to mount a smaller sight in addition to whatever scope was on the gun, in situations where CQC was unavoidable having a shorter ranged reticle certainly was very useful. However, still using a canted scope at this distance was quite unusual, I never knew anyone who would use it beyond ten metres.

"Leupold Mark 4 LR, normally at 6.5 to 20 magnifications."

"Yo, quite a sniper you are. On what gun?"

"My favourite is the SCAR SSR, but that gun won't be available for another… ten years. After that, I like the M39 EMR or the HK417, but those are also a few years away. Right now, I'll settle with an SR-25, but if I can get a Mod 1 or 2 I'll be happier… I don't like Mod 0, it's boring."

As things turned out, Kasumi was adequately knowledgeable about all aspects of modern firearms. Some of the guns she talked about were only distant memories just triggered by her mention. Based on appearance alone nobody would wager this fragile looking girl as a shooter of her skills, but I fortunately didn't fall for that stereotyping gimmick.

"So you're like- pretty good with a gun, huh?"

"Subjectively correct. My sisters call me Master Wick whenever I demonstrate my talents with a firearm, I don't exactly understand the premise of that nickname." I knew nothing of that reference as well other than it sounded cool as hell.

"Shout out to your sisters, Kasumi. They're clones too?"

"Yes, I hope you can meet them this time."

"Sure, maybe… although you totally reminded me about one of my traditions, you know what I'm talking about, right?"

—

"Squadron assembled!" Chizuru signified the rally of the three other members of my team before Marimo-chan, Kasumi and I. I asked the Instructor for a favour so I could talk to the squad about some important topics, relatively important, anyway.

"Alright, girls. So I'm noticing that you all are firing your weapon immediately after aiming. This is good, but only when your boots are on the ground. Unless someone was feeding me bad info here, I'm certain that this is going to be a TSF squad. So if you are in your TSF, the system will be different."

"Your unit comes with auto-aim, auto-lock and a bunch of stuff it will do for you, which all have a delay. So when piloting your machine, make sure to wait a few seconds, observe the situation and then proceed to fire. That may waste a little time but it's good practice in the long run."

 _Seriously hate long speeches so much, I'm missing anything, Kasumi?_ My advice wasn't necessarily bad, they were top-notch, in fact. It was just the constant talking which was getting boring.

 _Negative._

"So overall. Just make sure you remember to change your style when you are on the ground verse piloting. That is all."

"Shirogane… have you piloted a TSF before?" After a bit while passed, Class rep was the first to ask the obvious question that no doubt dwelled in the minds of all other.

"…Don't really wanna talk about that yet, I'm sure it isn't hard to guess though." The wave of dubious glances was not easy to swallow, it surely wasn't the comfiest sensation to act fishy around people who were with me literally twenty-four seven.

"C'mon, give this thing a try. I don't think it'll even feel that different, if at all." Around this time was when the boredom of our tacky training really started to screw with me.

—

"Proceeding, I personally think nipple piercings are not explicitly painful as compared to nose piercing. The amount of flesh which exists on the nostril is more sensitive than the nipple, and the jewellery is in a much more exposed location compared to the nipple. That often led me to accidentally play—"

"-What in the actual holy fuck are you talking about, Kasumi?" I couldn't listen to it for any longer, half-asleep or not.

Waking from my absent-minded daydream of absentmindedness, I found myself leaning on the thin wall separating each of the lanes in the gun range. To my right there was Kasumi, the young esper had taken aim with a Walther P99 pistol and fired on the target for however long she was there. There was an indisputable sense of minor puzzlement as to even how I could hear her over the blasting shots or the earmuffs.

"I was retelling the story of how I received a nose piercing."

"And I baited you into getting that? You?" Kasumi wearing any type of piercing was an image I could not fathom beyond my wildest dreams.

"You were very influential during your youth, Takeru-san."

"…Hmm… if I ever meet me from my kid days I'm gotta kick that little shit right in the sack, what an asshole I was. I'm sorry about that, Kasumi. You're beautiful no matter how you are, piercing or not. Nose ones just aren't my thing anymore… apparently, nipples I'll give a pass."

"It's alright, I can't say that it wasn't enjoyable to a certain degree. And it had become one of my more lapsed memories." At least it wasn't all bad.

"You know, you two remembering all this stuff is really helpful to me, honestly. I'm like an old gramp with Alzheimer's at this point, so many things just don't seem to carry over through these damned loops. So you having photographic memory is a really nice save."

 _Hey! You kids get off my lawn!_

My vivid imagination earned an infrequent chuckle from Kasumi, leading to her messing up the reload of her pistol almost hazardously.

"It wasn't always beneficial to remember everything… I suppose rewarding is the proper term. There were so many nights where I missed the sound of your voice, the poise in your smile… the warmth of your touch. And even so… I don't remember everything I should, something's missing… but something's always missing."

An introspective mood weaved seamlessly into our nostalgic chatter, an odd sensation of longing struck an alien part of my heart as those words sent flashes to my vision. The Kasumi standing before me somehow appeared unlike her normal self, the vulnerable shadow of this matured child took a novel shape.

" _I learned so much… I did so much for us…but it wasn't enough for my eyes to see the future._ "

She drawn the gun closer to her eyes and deformed the previous Modern Isosceles Stance of shooting, the fingers on her left hand wrapped over the knuckles of her right and tightened its stiff grip on the weapon, her thumbs too overlapped firmly together to add to the solid hold. With both of her arms bending inwards near her chest and tilting her gun, this uncanny figure very closely resembled a boxer's stance.

" _The flame of war was never once smothered, we could never let go of our desire to exhume the ways of old…_ " Taking that peculiar posture, Kasumi pulled the trigger of her P99 once more in rapid succession.

It was an unbelievable sight to behold, firing her pistol as fast as her trigger finger would allow, Kasumi's bullets stuck near impeccably on the forehead of the steel target with flawless precision. The single dent created by her 9mm rounds was obscured in the dense powder of the pulverized ammo, yet a mere visual obstruction was helpless in hampering Kasumi's accuracy.

" _And amidst all that, I still strived to remember your names, your faces, your lessons. I never forgot you, or the things you've left behind._ " By the time the slide locked back and the smoke cleared from the barrel, she had emptied the fifteen-round magazine under five seconds.

"Kasumi… that was…" I didn't fault myself for being rendered speechless in the presence of her performance.

"To me, there are two dates I could never hope or hope to forget in my short life." Three bullets were picked out from the pouch lying to her side, one was inserted into the chamber through the ejection port and two were pressed into another mag which she slipped back into her magazine belt.

"January first of 2002, the day we first launched Operation Cherry Blossom…"

From somewhere I was oblivious to, Kasumi retrieved three empty beer bottles and immediately hurled them across and over the field faster and further than I thought possible.

"And the second date is January first of 2049, that day also held significant meaning to me."

Then was when I observed what was arguably the finest example of the unrivaled marksmanship in history. Instantaneously, Kasumi shot one glass bottle straight out of the sky within milliseconds of her left hand returning to the gun. The reload that followed was so ridiculously swift I barely caught a glimpse of the old magazine which was swung out from the grip hitting the right panel of the booth. When I looked back, she had already pulled back on the slide of the pistol in her canted grip and proceeded to shatter the remaining two bottles before either hit the ground.

"What? …What year did you—"

"-I'm sorry, Takeru-san. I shouldn't have spoken about that, the memories from a long time ago seems to have made me sentimental… please forget I said anything…"

"-Yashiro Kasumi! Watch where you're throwing your magazine! You do that on the battlefield you might as well smack whoever's to your right over the head!" When I was lost amidst wondrous confusion, Marimo-chan interrupted our mystical and baffling conversation.

"Yes, ma'am. I apologize."

"I don't really think you are! State what you're saying loudly and clearly!"

"Yes, ma'am. I apologize." It was literally the copy pasted sentence, Marimo-chan must have noticed too.

"Ahh… forget it. But what you displayed was some pretty good shooting, if you just be careful with your wild motions you'll make a great sharpshooter, Yashiro." A rather modest Instructor Jinguuji scolded Kasumi for her habit, her departure was replaced by the rest of the Squadron.

"Wow! That was amazing, Yashiro-san! I can't believe you're this good at shooting!" Tama rushed in and was the first to praise Kasumi for her achievement.

"I've to admit, I can't dream of shooting like that, Yashiro. Where did you even learn this?"

"Basically superhuman…"

"That expertise of yours in firearm manipulation may very well be the zenith of human capability, to this accurately strike the same location on a target in rapid succession and to virtually reload and fire again spontaneously with that speed hitting three midair objects… I grant you my heartfelt acclamation, Yashiro Kasumi." Ending off the applause for Kasumi with a long ass speech from Meiya, the young Russian girl only nodded in response.

"But why do you hold your gun sideways though, Yashiro-san? It looks not really comfortable."

"It's called C.A.R… it's a complicated shooting system, we should talk about it later, the Instructor is calling us." Was Kasumi a mind-reader or something? Marimo-chan did, in fact, summon the team a few seconds later.

I considered it unfortunate I didn't get to see Tama's sniping skills that day, but instead, I did get to lay my eyes on some seriously top-tier shooting by one of the people I thought I knew best.

 **Hallway**

 _Kasumi, you know what blue balls are?_

" _Are you requesting me to elaborate?_ "

 _No! But if you know, why you gotta do that to me?_

" _Please elaborate._ "

 _Damn it girl you know what I mean! I'm actually not that shocked about the shooting thing, but what's up with 2049!? That's almost fifty years away! I'll unironically be having Alzheimer's at that age! And now I'm mad I didn't save this joke for later!_

" _Takeru-san, if this is a serious topic. I ask you to trust me that I am only withholding information for your benefit. I love you, I'll never do anything to potentially ruin you, please trust me, even if just this once._ " The way which she worded her lines left me with little room to refuse if any.

 _Alright… fine whatever, I obviously didn't know you as well as I thought I did- that or I forget, but it's refreshing. We're sharing a deeper bonding experience, that's pretty good, right? I believe you'll let me know what I should when I should, Kasumi._

Again, a single nod back was Kasumi's answer. After that, we headed for our usual classroom in silence, the squad trailing behind us seemed to be enclosed in their own little discussion, whispering stealthily into each other's ears and all that.

"Boss, grab that door, yo." By the time we reached the sliding door guarding our classroom against all sorts of danger not really, I invited class rep to announce our arrival.

"Oh…! Yeah, yeah. I got it… Excuse me! 207th training Squadron reporting!" Skimming the entrance across the floor, Chizuru saluted who she assumed was Instructor Jinguuji that sat by the podium.

"AHAHAHA! Welcome, my minions! I have been waiting for you! And you! And you! And you! And- not really you, Takeru-chan, your face gets old. But also Kasumi-chan! Hallo, hallo!"

 _About right, about right._

"Huuuh…?" Without seeing her face, it was hard to determine the magnitude of surprise on display for Chizuru, although it was a sign of something when her hands casually reached for the hostler only to realize she wasn't armed.

"-Well, don't block the door, Cadets! Into the room!" Marimo-chan's voice had a habit of randomly appearing that day.

So, we did follow her order and seated ourselves into our regular spots, as for Kasumi who wasn't assigned a desk she took the one closest to my right. Sumika was just kinda there on the stage, looking retarded.

"Believe it or not, squad, we're receiving one more member to the team today courtesy of Professor Kouzuki. This here is Kagami Sumika, the Professor stated that she's someone equally or more special compared to Shirogane, I'll leave it to the rest of you to figure out what that means. That'll be it for today, dismissed!"

One standing salutation later.

"And yeah! I'm Kagami Sumika! Apparently a Cadet of the 207th Squadron. Nice to meet you? Nice to meet you girls?" The ever so energetic 00 Unit glued a bright smile on her face and merrily greeted the team, she leaned forward keenly to study the features of her teammates who she already was familiar with, but she never grew tired of acting friendly.

It was Sumika again. The Kagami Sumika who, in a way, transcended humanity was again shining beautifully before my very eyes. It had been too long, while also not long enough of a time since the last time I set my sight upon her alluring yet wholesome physique.

And thus, one by one the girls shook hands with Sumika, each briefly introducing themselves and sending forward a wish for a fruitful relationship. When it was Kasumi's turn, they shared a tender hug as a token of bonding the two had embraced over the years.

"And Takeru-chan! I'm back from the dead, yo! You want a kiss!? _Chu-chu!_ Smooch, smooch!"

 _Stay hella away from me, woman. A man recognizes a cockblock when he sees one, and I sure as shit haven't taken a dive in that sweet pink yet._ I clicked the tips of my fingers together to emulate breaststroke swimming, she surely understood.

" _Tccccch~! What a freaking degenerate, Takeru-chan! No fun time for you tonight!_ "

 _So what, I got my V-card on lockdown, I haven't felt the hormones yet and you won't either._ My longest dry streak after arriving in a new loop was three months, didn't even jerk off once too, very proud of that one.

" _Wait… so like- Takeru-chan haven't done 'it' yet? Not even with Kasumi-chan?_ "

" _Negative, I too retain my virginity._ "

" _Huh… huuuh… hnnnnnng~?_ " The glint in Sumika's eyes just fluttered to reflect an abnormal light as she slowly raised her fist to her teeth and bit down harshly on the index finger.

The staring contest going on between the three of us was beginning to get uncomfortable, and that was on top of how uncomfortable it was already in the room since we all communicated via telepathy. The group of regular humans minus me were intentionally letting their questioning gazes be known.

"Dibs."

"FUC—! I mean- freak! It's not fair, Kasumi-chan! It's NOT FAIR! You always take it! Imagine this like the two of us racing in a marathon but you have a car!"

"I can't drive."

"Freaking you know what I mean! You can't have him this time! I want him! I WANT HIM!"

"But you can't retract my dibs, I won't allow it."

"Sounds unlucky, Sumika."

"-Ahem! My intuitions tell me this is not the introductory confluence amongst the three of you. As in that case, I suggest we relocate to a more suitable location for this eventual joyous reunification. Under this pretext, May I suggest heading to the PX?" Gloriously interrupting us with her antiquated pattern of speech, Meiya did bring a valid point of us standing around like idiots.

"All I heard was '~hur-hur-hur-hur~ look at me I'm old!' Mitsurugi-san, was it? That's kinda weird! Takeru-chan! Why does she talk like that!?" The eyes that found themselves trained onto the red-haired girl by her boldness stared on in disbelieve.

"…Kagami… Sumika, I must ask you to repeat yourself, Kagami Sumika. For I believe there was a qualified gradation of misinterpretation on my part, were you saying something?"

If this was my old world and was in the sixties and Sumika was the USA and Meiya the U.S.S.R, the nukes launched would damage the earth about as much as that iceberg did to the Titanic.

 **PX**

By the hand of God or some other miracle, the shots fired between Sumika and Meiya somehow ended with their initial blows. The scene had calmed down enough for Tama to post an innocent question around the time we found some seats in the PX.

"So, Kagami-san. Why did you join the squad?"

"I… err, was in a coma… actually, for three years after the BETA built their— wait, that's kinda spoiler-ish, I'm not allowed to talk about it. Anyway, I was in a coma for quite some time, I woke up about a couple of months ago and just got back on my feet." The lies mingled with spices of truth sounded plausible enough, if only she just avoided talking about it altogether and stuck to the question it would've been better.

"Insightful backstory, Kagami. However, I believe the inquiry imposed upon you was for what reason did you enlist in our Squadron." Meiya asked, applying an atypical strategy of passive aggressively mocking Sumika.

"Picky, huh? Also prickly. Whatever. You guys know Professor Kouzuki? I'm kinda a big deal for her so she's keeping me around. But I enlisted here because I wanna be with Takeru-chan! You're welcome, Takeru-chan!"

"Eat yourself."

"~Om-nom-nom-nom~ tasty!" Sumika feigned a lunge at me and tried to lick my face in a very non-erotic or cute way, only creepy.

"This woman's weird, girls. I'd apologize for her if it's my fault but it ain't, try to get along, yeah?"

"Of course, Takeru. After all, a constructive team is comprised of many unique individuals."

"Some are more unique than others though! And some are just plain useless." Spitting hot fire, on an elementary school level.

This whole dynamic going on, I wasn't extremely fond of. Sumika showed up for half an hour and she was turning into Chizuru's Ayamine for Meiya.

"Well, I think it's great that we suddenly gained so much new member in such a short time. The upcoming exam should be made much easier that way too." Class rep appeared to share my notion of growing sick of the quibble between the samurai and the android.

"And if they are Takeru-san's friends, then I'm sure we have nothing to worry about! Just look at Yashiro-san and her shooting earlier!" Tama happily added.

"That assertion I shall agree to. In reality, I see you as a likely prospect of great potential, Kagami Sumika. There lies no doubt in my mind that you stand as a competent personage of variable skills."

"Thanks, Mitsurugi-san. And I'm sure you can chop a lot of things with that sword!"

"…How do all of you seemingly know about the existence of Minaru Kamui?"

Was this how my old days were like? I wanted to believe yes.

—

The evening period for the PX was always eerily devoid of life, I could spot a couple of soldiers scattered around the café, but they were all dudes doing their own thing without a care for anyone else.

The Squadron had all left for their rooms one by one after dinner, I too returned for a shower and some quality gaming before venturing out again with another goal in mind, one I wasn't too keen on sharing with the girls of the training Company.

 _If only I can just buy some Bubble Tape I'll be solving two problems with one childishly laughable gum._

"I spy with my little spy… a Takeru-chan trying to buy some cigarette! I can't believe what I'm seeing, Takeru-chan!" That high-pitched yelping voice echoed loudly in the empty PX, almost attracting unwanted attention to my purchase.

"You mean a 'Takeru-chan who already bought a box', check it, this's my master card." Sumika was not very interested in the military issued credit card gifted by Yuuko-sensei.

"Smoking's bad for you, Takeru-chan! You're cancerous enough already, you really want more cancer!?" So, as it turned out Sumika wasn't even sincerely trying to stop me.

"Shut your mouth, woman. This's just a habit… I haven't smoked for decades or something."

"Well, it's not like I don't trust you or anything. I know you haven't touched anything hard in a long time. You actually-actually don't like drugs, huh?"

"Is that supposed to be weird?" Why she had to say it like I was in the wrong? Sure, I did try a lot of that stuff when I was young, but nothing stuck more than this mild fixation on tobacco which I already cured.

"Not really, it makes sense. Although it's just kinda lucky, you're allergic to marijuana, meth, and maybe heroin too. You're a natural anti-drug symbol! Literally the DEA's poster boy."

"How does that… in any way make any sliver of sense? On a side note though, not weed too? Well, I sorta remember wanting to try it out, guess that solves that question. Regardless, I won't smoke this, promise."

"I know you won't, you aren't that easy to tempt, Takeru-chan."

"Exactly, I am a man of principals and iron-will."

"~Huhu~ I feel like I should put that to the test."

Giggling sweetly, Sumika's blushed cheeks leaned daringly close and planted a deep kiss on my lips. When our mouths parted, the string of wet saliva followed her movement until it snapped apart as she blew a breath of moist air on the rim of my right ear while nibbling on its edge. At the same time, Sumika's tender, smooth fingers drew a wavy line across the side of my face, eventually reaching back around to pinch my bare neck.

"C'mon Takeru-chan, you should've known I never respected dibs."

"That's just plain rude, woman. Don't you ladies have a Bro-code too? Like a Hoe-code?

"We do, sure. But rule one in the Hoe-code says to value our pleasure above all else."

"Sounds bitchy, I dunno, Maybe I should consult Kasumi."

"A better idea, how about you pretend… ~to be my prisoner for the night?"

"Huh… bold."

"…~I want you to make me feel~ like I'm the only girl in the world~…" For unknown reasons, other than triggering my memories of seductive Sumika thanks to her scarce act of seduction, her last sentence also made me remember crashing my car.

—

 **Updated on 13/08/2017**

 **Author's note**

If you read the old version of my chapter, pls forget about it. That's hopefully what a rewrite does though. Anyway, thanks for reading. If you got anything hit me up.

BETA done by chad001


	4. Ch4: Do not talk about Fight Club

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 1, 2001**

 **Classroom**

" _No, you don't understand, Takeru-chan! She shot an Eishi through a half metre crack in his cockpit while midair in a chopper from five hundred metres away. All while the helo and the TSF were maneuvering through the air at different velocities!_ "

 _Uh-huh, Tama could probably do that too._

" _Maybe but it'd have taken her twice as long to acquire the shot, we definitely, totally would be dead by then! Kasumi-chan is a sharpshooter, she seeks and shoots fast, that's what she does!_ "

 _How about that, Kasumi. Sumika's praising you._

" _My face blushes._ " Her face did not blush, although I wasn't exactly in a situation where that was perceivable.

"You two ready? Is the blindfold on too tight?"

After class rep had her fun rubbing her silky hands through my hair pretending to tie the blinder, she switched over to do the same for Sumika. As for how we were baited into this gun assembly competition together, I couldn't tell.

"You kids ever play Russian roulette? Know how it's kinda about testing your luck by putting a bullet in a revolver and shooting? This's like that but giving me seven bullets in case one of them is a dud."

"We invented that, Takeru-san." The bunny girl certainly took her Slav pride without a dose of irony.

 **Firing range**

"Humm… two minutes and thirteen seconds, that's a bit slow, you know, Takeru-chan?" If it wasn't for her literally whispering into my earlobe, I definitely wouldn't trust my hearing. And Sumika had the audacity to grin that delightedly about her supposed easy victory over me in our race to put together a Type-91.

"You stupid retarded dimwit, you assembled it in fifty-seven seconds! Which part of 'in training' did you not understand? I could just about shove seventeen thousand markers into everyone's mouths with how wild they're gaping open!"

"It was pretty good, though, right? For a blindfolded full strip, only twice as slow as a field strip!"

"…Alright, okay. It was some solid stuff, I'm proud of you, Sumika. But the others are probably feeling more than pride right now. Actually… where are they, even?"

"I dunno, they were all thinking about needing some private time, it's weird."

The view behind us as we made our way to the shooting range was almost deserted from any signs of life, last I saw of the others they were still hanging out in the classroom probably exchanging admiration and amazement at our earlier feat. Although far in the distance, I could just about spot the outline of a Yashiro Kasumi haggardly jogging to catch to us.

"…Halt… please… wait." A worn-out Kasumi dragged her feet through the dirt and begged us not to ditch her past five metres. For a shooter as sharp as this young esper, I thought her physical condition would be a step above fictional.

"I like that stamina, Kasumi. You're hella fit."

"…My body… is deemed petite and delicate… hah… it is not designed for physical activities."

"The only place you can say that is under my bed sheets, missy. If we ever start popping dudes on foot you won't be too happy to run at a snail's pace."

"You've to start lifting, Kasumi-chan. You're like an autumn leaf right now, I can probably snap you with my fingers." Why Sumika chose such a disturbing example of Kasumi's fragility, I really didn't understand.

"Anyway, we're here. Show me how good you shoot, woman." Knowing this pink-haired robot, she wouldn't refuse the slimmest of chances to impress me.

"Get ready to have your breath taken away, Takeru-chan! Although which target you want me to shoot at? And how?" Eagerly inserting a single magazine into the bullpup rifle, Sumika keenly pressed the weapon's stock steadily into her shoulder and pulled back on the cocking handle.

"Go for the hundred-metre target. Full-auto, no restrictions."

"Roger, roger! Going hot!"

"That's only for pilots…! Whatever, just shoot." So Sumika naturally clicked the trigger for the firing pin to smash down, and there wasn't anything I could complain about after that.

Accuracy, fire stance, recoil control and overall RoF were all exceeding my expectations, maybe it didn't leave me suffocating for oxygen as the energetic 00 Unit had hoped, but it more than sufficed for any type of combat engagements we could possibly face as infantry.

"~Shot through the heart~! And you're to blame! Darlin', you give love~ a bad name!" A false claim; after exhausting all of her ammunition, the majority which struck the steel target's chest vaporized on contact, it definitely didn't shoot through any heart.

"Oh, wow, a song I actually know! How about that, Sumika. Do more of those and I'll be happier."

"Sure, grandpa. I'll reference more old people stuff just for you…"

"Aw, how kind of you, my—"

"-Or… or! I can make you a mixtape of all the future music! Ohmygod that's so genius how come I didn't think of this earlier— EXCEPT I DID! Take this, Takeru-chan!" Spitting out words faster than an M134 minigun, Sumika hung her rifle by its straps while pulling out some kind of hard drive and very arrogantly stuck it in my face.

"Wut."

"What you mean 'wut', take this USB, you dummy! I made this just for you! I spent days practicing and singing these songs so you can get a taste of the superior 21st century music! And I promise the quality, there's so no way my singing voice could be bad!"

"Huh… no shit? I know you can sing, especially English songs, but you're confident enough to actually put it on tape? I recognize your courage, woman. I'll accept this present and be happy… I am now happy."

Item received: Kagami Sumika's homemade mixtape x1.

—

" _Oi!_ Takeru! Don't pretend you can't hear us!"

"Hum? No, I was just having a heart attack, but it's the special kind of heart attack where you forget everything that happened in the last half a minute." Miraculously recovering from my near-death experience, I came to the realization that the rest of my Company had all gathered by the firing range along with us the elites.

"Haa… I dunno why I bother… but to repeat myself: as a collective, the original members of 207th Training Squadron is proposing a gamble with our newest three members. Do you accept?" Staying true to her name, Chizuru wonderfully represented the team which stood boldly behind while she retold their aim to challenge us.

"What're we betting on? And for what?"

"A sniping competition between any of you and Tamase. If you lose, you'll have to answer one of our questions to completion and it'll be the same if we lose."

 _What do you girls think? We have more to hide than they do._

" _Dew it, DO IT!_ "

" _According to my calculation, my hit miss ratio within two thousand metres is slightly higher compared to Tamase-san. I recommend we accept this gamble._ "

Green lights were lit from my two companions, however, I wasn't exactly fond of their strategy.

"Tama, so you agreed to this, huh?"

"Y-yes, I-I did! It's not meant to be a secret but when it comes to sniping, I'm quite confident…! At least a bit! And more importantly you three have been doing everything better than us after coming here a-and we don't wanna be behind forever."

I saw her little fists clenching together in front of her chest as a beam of stirring will from her eyes glimmered vibrantly in hope of letting her deep determination reach me. If Tamase was still hassled by her usual shy and panicky personality, then it was a desire to overcome that weakness which led her to face us directly.

"And Instructor is fine with this?" I turned to Marimo-chan who only discreetly observed from the afar.

"As long as you all behave within regulation, I trust you to not step out of line in any case." If she was also curious about our back story, Marimo-chan was hiding it pretty well.

"In that case, I see that you mean business, cool. Let's do this, bring out the toys and we'll shoot, you against me."

" _Wait, really?_ "

" _Takeru-san, I must inform you it is ill-advised to challenge Tamase-san yourself. I am objectively more suited for long range engagement._ " It was natural for the two girls on my side to be somewhat reluctant for me to take this role.

 _Listen here, I'm no punk-ass bitch, yeah? I can do my own thing just fine, you think because Kasumi here is Neo that makes me forget how to hold a gun? I got this._ After sharing a knowing glance, Sumika shrugged off her worry and Kasumi replied with her classic one nod.

"O-okay! Let's go with two chances each at the one thousand metre target! Whoever's closer wins!" Simple rules with great ambition, couldn't disagree.

With her oversized Barrett M95 in hand, Tamase took her usual prone position and tinkered incisively with the scope adjustments for the optimal zeroing and bullet trajectory. It was a nostalgic view; dismissing her non-existent booty, I remembered often playing the role of Tama's spotter many times in the past, we worked as a sniper cell and made our shots count on a wide variety of targets.

"Okay, I'm ready here! Please watch carefully!" So she aimed, and she shot.

"Seven, outside the black." With the bullseye as ten, it was already an impressive feat to hit that close to the centre on her first shot. But knowing Tama, even if it didn't show on her serious face, the young girl was disappointed in her initial performance.

"You know, Tama. The first shot through the barrel is always the least accurate, you know why?"

"It's a cold bore shot, when the barrel hasn't heated up yet." Tama spoke distinctively without taking her sight off the scope to rechamber another round.

"That's right, so it makes sense that—"

"-But Takeru-san, that's only a myth." The times where Tama interrupted me could be counted on one hand, so it wasn't too ridiculous to count me as sparsely surprised when that number rose so suddenly.

While my brain ran dry for a retort, another bullet set sail for the heart of its mark.

"I'm seeing a… holy crap, a nine well in the black, on the bullseye line! That's incredible, Tamase!" Class rep was quick to praise the blushing girl after she climbed onto her feet.

"Ahehe… I believed I'd make that shot, and I did! Although it felt a bit strange, having Takeru-san watching me gave me a boost to confidence!" Her innocent smile added a comforting taste to my inevitable defeat, seeing the aptitude beginning to take shape was already more than enough to satisfy me.

"Very good, very good… now I'll try this thing…" However, I was no quitter.

Receiving the M95, I wasted no time with silly adjustments or even dirtying my uniform on the mat. If I couldn't beat Tama when it came to skill, I might as well as try my luck.

"Shot out! …And… shot out!" Two rounds, back to back. Did I aim? Maybe just a bit.

"Takeru! What're you even doing?! You didn't even try to aim that shot! Even if you think you can't win it isn't right to give up!" Class rep obviously had that bone to pick with me, so she immediately complained up a nice thunderstorm as always.

"You claim that, Sakaki. Yet despite all potentiality of a predestined failure, Takeru has not surrendered his game. If you be so wise to exanimate the paper sheet for yourself. I can unreservedly state that I see a bullet hole in the black between eight and nine on the line."

"There's no way…! That's… but that's…!"

"Takeru… buy lottery with me…" Those were more in line with events that had a high likelihood of taking place.

"Y'all know what you actually need? Jesus, the RNGesus."

 **Classroom**

"—Okay, that's enough for today, dismissed!"

"—Salute!" Thus Marimo-chan was done with her whole teaching thing for the day and left.

"Alright then, I'm hungry, you hungry? I'm hungry so let's go grab some goods, yeah?"

"Not so fast, Takeru. You're not getting away from the bet."

 _How could this happen?_ I thought they all had goldfish memories.

"Humm… we promised you a single question, right? Fine, I can't talk about classified information but I won't use that as an excuse, ask away."

"I'm glad that you're honouring our game, Takeru. But we're not asking our question yet, it should be the right of everyone to have a say so we'll wait until Yoroi comes back and she gets a good grasp on you three." What Class rep proposed sounded reasonable and altruistic, they wouldn't want to waste such an opportunity to ask me for my favourite food.

"Still… you ain't human, buddy." Ayamine inserted her controversial opinion just as we were about to leave.

—

" _Oh no, oh-no! Watch out, watch out, watch out!_ "

"-Huh-? Ahh-AAAAAAA!"

" _OHMYGOD! RKO outta nowhere! She wasn't even ready for it! What an amazing knock-out!_ "

"You two are terrible human beings, I can't believe you did this."

Kasumi's finger pointing was getting under my skin just a tiny bit, if she knew someone was about to round the corner and smack her right in the face for the millionth time she too would want a perfectly executed knock-out to be performed. As for Sumika's commentary, that I wasn't responsible for.

"Oooow~! ow-ow-ow…! That really hurts a lot! Why was I thrown on the ground?"

"Hey, you okay? Gotta watch where you're going, never know when Randy Orton could just knock you right out." I stretched my hand for the cyan-haired dumbass, she clumsily steadied herself and climbed back onto her feet.

"Hey! You actually remember Randy the wrestler! I'm surprised, Takeru-chan!"

"True… you're correct." And that was all I had to say about that.

"You know, I just came outta the hospital, I really don't wanna go back after so soon!" like the good-old Mikoto, she completely ignored mine and Sumika's side conversation to transform her thoughts into words without consideration.

"Then don't be spooking dudes, my dude. You be acting like the ~Spooky Scary Skeleton~!"

For my first time seeing Mikoto again after appearing in the new world, this wasn't half-bad of an introduction. She was always her usual aloof self, her and her brain which was missing a couple screws since the dawn of time. But that was fine too, there wasn't a single thing I wished to change about our team's utility master.

Mikoto was fine as she was, and her return reformed the team into what it was supposed to be all along.

"Ahh! I saw that show before! Somewhere! It's too bad we don't have much western tv shows here, you know? But I did get to watch a lot of tv while in the hospital and there was this one—"

"-Yoroi-san!' Tama took the mess of a talk off my hands before Mikoto could beat me at my own game of being retarded.

"Aaaaah! Miki-san! It's been forever—"

"-Oh? …what are you doing here?"

"Ah, Chizuru-san!"

"…Yoroi? To be reunited so soon?"

"Meiya-san too! And Kei-san, hi there!"

"So, what happened? I heard someone scream." I determined it was unwise and unnecessary to re-enact our first meeting without being shielded by the safety net of the squared circle.

"She ran into me and I ran her into the ground, I'm really just an immovable object."

"Yoroi, you are not hurt?"

"It's okay, my bones are strong! And spooky!"

"…Whatever. Let me introduce you then, Yoroi. These three here are our new teammates." Class rep pointed in our direction, Mikoto set a bright mood in plain view to represent her vigorous excitement.

"So you guys are the new members then!"

"Uh-huh, I'm Shirogane Takeru. Like you, I am a man." Mikoto tilted her head to the side, an array of expressions shifted across her face.

"You really shouldn't listen to anything Takeru-chan says. I think the only thing you two have in common is that you're both kinda weird, but Mikoto-chan's weird is different from being ~mentally ~disabled! Takeru-chan!" Sumika happily squeezed in to ruin her impression of me.

"Mikoto-san. I'm Yashiro Kasumi." Might as well just kept her mouth shut if Kasumi couldn't invent a gag on the spot.

"Takeru-san, Sumika-san and Yashiro-san! It's great to have three new members! I was in the hospital for a while so I wasn't here when you guys first came!"

"Good news for you, Captain Obvious."

"Well anyway, I've got to hurry up and see our Instructor! If not I'll be late for lunch! Bye, I'll see you later, everyone!" And there she went, such a free spirit.

"-Ah, that's right." Except then she came back.

"Hm? What is it?"

"Let's shake." She merrily grabbed my hand and waved it up and down in a motion that technically would be disqualified for a handshake before doing it to Kasumi and Sumika as well.

"I'm looking forward to training with you!" That was the flat girl's final call prior to disappearing from our sight.

"We should get going too, we don't have much time." Class rep reminded us to fill our stomach unless we craved starvation.

"Takeru, Kagami, Yashiro. The PX is my recommendation for the location of our next jaunt."

"It's yakisoba today…"

"That's your favourite, right, Ayamine-san?"

Another calm day.

 **November 2, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Takeru-chan! What do you think of these?!"

"Don't fucking talk so loudly, woman. It's tooooo early."

" _Sure, sure. But what do you think?_ "

 _I dunno, looks kinda gay._

" _But I'm a girl though, totally!_ "

 _Then it's fine, just get your panties outta my face. I don't give a flying fuck either way._

" _Geez! You have like- zero appreciation for the feminine charm! You'll never be married at that rate!_ "

 _Okay, thanks, mom. In that case, I'm asexual as much as you enjoy incest._

" _Are you implying I won't do you if you're related to me?_ "

"Wait… what? You're the only child, right? You are the only child?"

" _Shush, shush! Keep your voice down, Takeru-chan! Kasumi-chan moved to the room across the hall last week, remember?_ "

 _Oh, yeah. I'm surprised you were still able to sneak in after that, you hella stealthy, girl. But then won't she notice what you're doing?_

" _Haha, no way! I always make sure to fake her senses before I come here, I'm like an F-22, but even more sneaky! She can't feel me unless I want her to feel me._ "

 _Your powers, you're really using it better nowadays, huh?_

" _Yep, yep! The Buffwhite device sensei put in my hairpin is basically useless if I concentrate, but I'll show you just how strong I'm getting some other time._ "

 _You think playing around with Yuuko-sensei's failsafe is a good idea though? She might find out, and she won't be happy if she finds out._

" _I'm not afraid of her, Takeru-chan! If she's a genius she'll know not to mess with me. And it's not a problem for you to worry about. You just focus on saving the world and that stuff, I'll protect you, promise!_ "

… _I'll allow it, you do good by me, Sumika. I… acknowledge and respect you for who you're to me._

" _Thanks, Takeru-chan! I love you, I love you forever!_ "

 _Anyway, time for you to GTFO. I gotta take a shower before Kasumi comes to wake me. By the way, can you still smell it? In the room, I mean._

" _No, it smells fine now. I'll see you later, Takeru-chan._ "

 **Training Field**

"Stoooop, give it up already! I'm like the Jackie Chan! The Bruce Lee! The Toshiro Mifune! The Asian Chuck Norris! I can whoop your ass in three seconds flat and still have two seconds to pick my nose!"

"Non-… nonsense! A martial artist has no place so rudely affronting their opponent! Haa… haa… with all due respect, Takeru. You fight without the inner honour of a warrior, perhaps more akin to a brawler, or a vandal."

"Well, this vandal sure as hell is putting your ass in the mud, Meiya! Get the fuck up!"

As soon as my taunt tainted the air with that satirical mix of mockery and motivation, a rain of blows from her plastic knife flew fast as lighting from many angles towards me. Meiya struck with precision and robustness stocked in every jab, slash and thrust, but there was only so much she could do under the pretext of training. Fortunately or unfortunately, the same stayed true by me.

"Hah- hah… aha! Gotcha-bitch!" When one of her fateful stabs came so close to grace my left ear, I grabbed that outstretched hand of hers and threw her over my shoulder, making all Judo coaches around the world proud.

"Woohoo! Hell yes! Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee! The hands can't hit what the eyes can't see!" I stepped away from Meiya as she sluggishly got back up onto her feet, by that time I could notice a part of her fighting spirit had already escaped through her eyes.

"I… I am not ashamed to meet defeat at your hands, Takeru. Thus, I shall tolerate this unassailable humiliation. Laugh now if you will, however, forget me not for I swear to one day earn mastery that of which surpasses even your aptitude." The young samurai bowed down before me humbly, fortunately, there was still plenty of time left for her to improve massively in all subjects.

"Well… I wasn't really expecting this, to be honest. You're pretty good already with a knife, girl, there's literally nothing wrong with losing to me at this point. You remember who I really am, right? Don't beat yourself up over something so trivial. Also, I'm kinda sure you got that thousand-folded blade stashed up somewhere in your room."

"While what you claim may stray no further from the truth than reality itself, I still shall not evade the consequences of my loss. Incidentally, the competition between us is locked to short blades alone, borrowing the asset that is Minaru Kamui would be a dishonesty to the rules." So self-righteous, was she too self-righteous?

"Ahh- hmm, that's a bit going too far, I thin—" If a flying body didn't interrupt my sentence, I'd have said something about how fighting a Meiya with her katana is more on-par to me.

However, the corpse of one short-haired trollster cut across the sky and smashed away our discussion and probably a few of her ribs. Analyzing her short but painful course through the air I could conclude without a doubt that Ayamine was sent flying by a force of great momentum that a normal human being shouldn't be capable of.

"Arrgghh… fuckin… what…?" With the actual manifestation of agony growing on her face. The poor girl squirmed raggedly on the dirt ground until she gathered enough strength to pull her injured body upright and face her attacker.

"What in the world…! For Ayamine to be slung over such an enormous distance!"

"Jesus Christ. Overkill much, woman?" I didn't understand why she had to be this way, which part of her physical violence could be used for close combat anyway?

"Snake, try to remember some of the basics of CQC." Towering over her defeated opponent, Sumika demonstrated the actually meaning rubbing salt over a flesh wound.

"Kagami… you female ape… get over here…!" Taking the scarce initiative given to her by a boasting Sumika, Ayamine leapt off the ground and recoiled her fist for a devastating punch.

Sadly, Sumika just kinda weaved her hand and slapped the girl back in the chest. Strictly speaking, it was an open-palmed strike applied to the centre of mass on Ayamine, but seeing the 00 Unit performing anything professionally just made it appear silly.

"GG no RE! you tried, Ayamine-san. That's what really matters!" While Ayamine took her time choking and coughing after being bashed down ruthlessly, Sumika still merrily gloated on as if she didn't even break a sweat during their skirmish.

"Ayamine! Are you unhurt?! There are bruises visible over a vast area of your skin!"

"…Mitsurugi, don't do it… she's too strong for you… it's all over for me… save yourself… run." And then Ayamine died in Meiya's arms, literally.

"Awwa, well guess it's over then. I thought she'd provide a challenge to me." Behaving like the classic Shonen villain she was, Sumika shook her head and was ready to exit the scene after leaving her real opponent with the dying wish of the one she slew.

"…Halt! Kagami Sumika! If you would be so kind to spare me a fragment of your moment during your hectic hour, I feel I must bring a proper conclusion to your battle against Ayamine."

"Huuh? And what's you want, Mitsurugi-san? I'm not really busy right now since it's free training, but I do wanna snuggle up with Takeru-chan if there's nothing else!" Good for Sumika on finding a way to drag me into this.

"Abiding by that rationale, I must regrettably ask you to postpone your longing for Takeru. For I believe there is a need for you to apologize to Ayamine."

"…Yeah, say sorry." I personally didn't think the corpse's words should count.

"Whaa? But she's the one who lost! How is it my fault Ayamine-san couldn't hold out? And she picked the fight too, saying how she's gonna kick my bum!" That sounded credible enough, Ayamine did enjoy starting shit.

"Regardless of the foundation of this inefficacious duel, I do not recall the purpose of today's training was to strike each other to the point of corporeal exhaustion. Rather we were meant to study the correct mindset of a warrior amidst the battlefield, of which you have performed poorly."

"Blah, blah, blah! Blah, blah, blah! You just won't stop talking with those super complicated words, won't you, Mitsurugi-san! If you really are so unhappy with me winning then we can rough it up too!"

"Exactly as I desired. I am now announcing my intention challenge you in combat!" Like any good main protagonist, Meiya shed a single droplet of tear as she tenderly released the dead chick's cold body.

"Oh, wha? I was kinda joking about tha-… whatever! More importantly, you didn't even defeat Takeru-chan, how could you stand a chance against me? I've never lost to him, not even once!"

 _Buzz, buzz. My bullshit detector is picking up a big fat pile of crap._

" _Shaddup, Takeru-chan! I'm about to have me some fun! And if you don't bother us you'll see some fun too._

 _I said nothing, what do you mean I was warning you two not to kill each other?_ I highly doubt they were capable of harming the other in any serious manner at this stage in their training, but I had been wrong before.

"Your underestimation of my abilities will be your downfall, Kagami. I shall serve you the crisp taste of this plastic blade."

"C'mon, Mitsurugi-san you know that's not true! I know you're not used to the reach of a tiny knife, go fetch that big ol' Imperial katana of yours, I'll be patient and wait."

"Unrequired, Kagami. You yourself are unequipped with any tools to enhance your own capabilities."

"If you think that you're wrong! I'll get my own weapon too, obviously. Or what? Afraid that you can't win even with a mighty sword given to you by the Empire? Guess that make sense though, you'll be shaming the Shogun… Kouboi or something?" Two things captured my interest as the feud between Sumika and Meiya escalated; how the android got herself a weapon and how she had the guts to insult the samurai's heritage.

"Wow, wow. That's like- a bit much, Sumika. Even I wouldn't say that…"

"Kagami Sumika! You have spoken enough! You stand to be a member of the 207th Squadron, therefore my teammate and my acquaintance. Nonetheless, I only just realized how I find your attitude and personality to be absolutely disagreeable."

"Then why don't you do something about it, Mitsurugi Meiya!? I never liked how high and mighty you always sound!" We were really turning up the temperature on the field to eleven, even when November's chill was freezing the air I could still feel the raging heat of passion dripping from the two absorbed combatants.

"Our desires align, Kagami. My return shall be swift, however no swifter than your defeat."

"Yeah, whatever. BRB so I can kick your dumb butt!"

While the contestants retreated to prepared themselves for war, I cleared the fresh remains of the dead off the course.

"Oh, man. I'm actually a bit excited to see them throw down, I can't remember the last time we had a good PvP fist fight!"

"…Not worried about them hurting each other?" Ayamine whispered her murmured into my ear as I leaned her against a tree for shelter and a good view of the arena.

"Nah, nothing wrong with boys getting a bit dirty with one another. That's how growing up is like."

"…We're all females here."

"And I'm all about gender equality."

—

"For your own safety, I shall not unleash Minaru Kamui from its sheath. However, if the tools you have prepared are keen blades, feel unreserved negligence in unbridling them."

"… Don't really understand what you said, but what I normally use are blunt!"

Zealously stating her readiness to fight. Sumika drew from her special duffle bag a pair of wooden tonfas. The reflective pale colour of the processed oak left behind a blurred line as she spun them by the handle in both hands, one clockwise and the other counterclockwise.

"Tonfas… now that is a close-range tool I have not had the pleasure to witness in action in ages."

"Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure you get a good look at them, the best look, in fact."

"I shiver at the idea, however are you properly trained with these tools, Kagami?"

"What? They're like sticks, Mitsurugi-san! I'm just gonna hit you! Although I did consider brass knuckle or _Tekko_ , those are a bit too lame though, so I went with these bad boys! -Ah! Takeru-chan! What is your humble opinion!?" Sumika did a little spinning jig as she bragged on about her twigs, even asking for my input in that matter.

"You fucking Edgelord!" I shouted back at her, just covered by the leaves of the tree above sitting beside Ayamine.

"Well, I expected nothing less, to be honest." Sumika shook her head to fake disappointment.

"We shall start whenever you stand ready, Kagami. Furthermore, with your prowess, this shall not take long."

"Then I'm ready right now! Let's GO!"

—

"It's… it's still going, they might die like this, Takeru…"

"Yeah, well. I think that's an ending they'll both be happy with. We really should strive to do what pleases us the most in life, you know?"

"Understandable… that's my philosophy."

So like any good fight between longtime rivals or short-termed rivals, or just regular enemies. It was the part where they beat the shit outta each other that remained to be the reason why people were so attracted to violence. Sitting alongside Ayamine watching the entire pleasant ordeal take place was certainly a unique experience, even by my standards.

"Oooh… Meiya just got bashed on the skull! Jesus this's hella messy…" Maybe it wouldn't be too strange for me to be worried about their health.

"…How will the instructor be okay with this?"

"She will be if she doesn't know. Besides, this's like watching Rocky II here with how hard they're kicking each other's shit. I dig it, good stuff." Ayamine silently contemplated my words before returning her sight to the field.

When the fight first started both girls were braced for the inevitability of eventually receiving a clean hit, so their stance was cautious, their senses tuned to be sprung at the slightest movement. However, as the fight prolonged and they both were credited with some solid hits, it became more a savage beatdown than a civilized duel.

The samurai fully utilized the advantage of her treasured sword as her strikes were always fleet and rapid. Meiya's training elevated her to a position higher on the skill chart than Sumika, her expertise with her katana delivered that edge faster and steadier than Sumika's blows whenever the android was too slow to block.

But for those precious moments when Sumika did connect her tonfas to any part of Meiya's body, the damage was rather extremely overwhelming. Being the none-organic 00 Unit, her smacks were on a power level incomparable to a normal human. If Meiya didn't avert the full-blown force of her attacks she could no joke be dead.

Eventually though, Meiya's speed decreased at an equal pace to Sumika's burliness. Both girls suffered immense tiredness from the lengthy exercise, the reddish bruises scattered all over their body proved to be the testament of their will to continue the contest for as long as possible.

"…Might be over, Takeru…"

"…Yeah, agreed. Think you can move now? We gotta hop out." If the responsibility for preventing serious injuries to my teammates during training was mine, they should've left a memo.

"…Okay… dunno these losers."

If this really was a climactic battle scene, then no doubt the dramatic moment would be when both of those completely wearied girls threw caution to the wind and strived for one final swing to end the battle. But since their fight had literally no meaning, they looked absolutely stupid earning a double knockout as everyone else finally noticed the commotion and summoned Sergeant Jinguuji.

 **PX**

"Man… oh, man… this's actually so gold… look at you two, you two are like idiots. If you were chickens you'd be like Kentucky Fried idiots! Marimo-chan literally had fire bursting outta her ears when the nurse was patching you two up, you kids are something special, I'm telling ya."

Claiming the PX at noon was a gloomy environment was probably the understatement of the century. After their grand showdown, Marimo-chan had these spiteful trainees patched up in the medical bay while shouting every insult in the instructor's book at them, also confiscating their nice weapons until further notice.

"Instructor Jinguuji's overreaction was substantially superfluous, withstanding abuse should be considered a common trait in soldiers." Meiya commented as she swallowed her lunch while maintaining her dignified aspect.

"It wasn't even that big of a deal, honestly! Look at me! I'm still in great shape as— ow-ow-ow-ow!" What brought me relative surprise was the injury Sumika sustained wasn't all that apart from Meiya, so either she too had the capabilities of a regular human in terms of endurance, or the purple-haired girl was a hidden beast in disguise.

"I can't believe you just watched them and did nothing, Takeru." Class rep was quick to point fingers.

"Implying it's my job to babysit? Hello? We're military dudes, right? Why'd I wanna stop them from duking it out?"

"But there's a limit to how far things should go! Look at these two! They're hurt all over!"

"Well… well…"

I was willing to admit her allegation had no shred of fallacy whatsoever. Both Meiya and Sumika were covered by bruises and band-aids from head to toe, some more severe injuries included a trauma gash on Meiya's forehead above her left eye that just happened to be gushing blood minutes before we patched her up with the doctor.

For Sumika, she received a straight, nice cut across the right side of her cheeks at an incline about forty degrees down from her ear. Since Meiya never once drew her steel blade, the slash represented the terrifying proficiency of which that royalty wielded her katana. And all that wasn't even including what sensei would do once she found out about Sumika's little accident.

"I'm seriously worried here! Can you two even participate in the exam? It's only in two weeks and I don't think those scars will heal in time!"

"Gratuitous agitation, Sakaki. Mere flesh wounds shall be of no concern during the examination, it will not stand as a hindrance to my abilities."

"Same here! Not the first time I bled while doing sports anyway." Their reassurance seemed to have settled class rep's nerves.

"Haa… still, you two are really brutal during that fight, I was honestly scared to step in until the very end… and to think I thought what I held against Ayamine was hatred. Do the two of you even know each other to… you know, do this?"

Class rep's insightful inquiry connected the gazes of those two vengeful rivals, they stared on into each other's eyes for what felt like an eternity until finally Meiya was the one to crack under the pressure.

"I shall state this, Kagami Sumika. I do not dislike you, for there lies no vendetta between us. However, the sight of you heightens my recognition of restlessness… I vow upon my own name, you have taken something from me before, something that was a part of myself. Therefore, even if my only evidence in your misdeed is my belief, I cannot allow myself to let down my guard."

Perhaps the sharpest thing Meiya owned wasn't her precious katana, but her vigilant mind.

"…Interesting you'd say that, Mitsurugi-san. Lemme ask you this, do you believe in the afterlife and resurrection? It's like the things they talk about in Shinto."

"I… am unsure whether it is the right time for my faith to be laid upon a religion."

"I see, well I don't believe that stuff either. Anyway, I guess I must've offended you in our previous life… or we're fated to be enemies forever. But that's not what I want, it's not right for us to fight on everything. If I have to say it, I'm sorry for whatever I did in the past and how I make you remember bad memories."

I listened, but I chose to not comment on the predicament two of the most important people in my life had found themselves in. It wasn't my place to direct their feelings of the heart. Even God admitted to not wishing for the will of man to be controlled, and just because I was a bit better than God didn't mean it was my right to do what he didn't.

"Kagami… you receive my appreciation for understanding my absurd demands. Perhaps the you that subsists before me can assist me in overcoming your phantom which subsists within my mind."

"So like- I can be the Exorcist? That's pretty cool! You know what I'm talking about, Mitsurugi-san? It was like… _The Power of Christ compels you! The Power of Christ compels you! The Power of Christ compels YOOOOOOU!_ " Sumika then proceeded to wave around her fork like a Christian Cross in the face of a greatly confused Meiya.

"…Ahem, anyway. And of course, I too must sincerely apologize for my own delusion. I am sorry, Kagami Sumika, I am to blame for driving a wedge between our mutually beneficial relationship. I hope you can find it within you to forgive my insolence." She bowed her head low, but still full of nobility as she apologized to the 00 Unit.

"Ahahaha…! It's really no big deal, Mitsurugi-san! You probably noticed already but I'm kinda a bitchy person too, and I know there're just people you can't get along with. Maybe that'll change in the future, if not, it's not something we should fight about all the time, right? Let's just makeup and not piss each other off too often."

"Huu… I find that to be a highly desirable conclusion, let us not discord on meaningless topics. I shall set aside my personal feelings regarding you and hope you too can do the same."

"Sounds good to me, there's nothing wrong with peace, after all." So apparently the trick to not ripping their adversary's limbs off was to simply have a civil discussion, I counted myself as surprised by their willingness to negotiate and just how quickly it was done.

"Alright, I'm happy you two solved your problem so fast, because we still got that first-aid training in the afternoon and lunch is almost over." By class rep's reminder, we all gobbled down our meals at a lightning pace.

—

 _Kasumi, hey, Kasumi._

" _You summoned me, Takeru-san?_ "

 _Give me the_ definition _of dyke._

" _Dyke, often spelled d-i-k-e in British English is a naturally occurring or artificially constructed ridge, fill or wall with the purpose of regulating water levels._ "

 _Yeah, okay. You pass._ That dyke had no idea what I was actually thinking about.

The afternoon lesson was so-so, Kasumi shoved her tongue down Mikoto's throat when I opted out for being the practice dummy of the CPR training. That Russian girl must had misinterpreted a medical procedure to mouth raping her teammate, but accidents like that happened all the time. Also, that chick was undeniably, positively the dictionary definition of a lesbian, just surprised nobody else noticed.

After that, there was Sergeant Major Kyozuka again behind the counter. She was alright, kinda like my mom when it came to the cooking department, but then my mom in this world was dead as shit so not really like my mom. More like Sumika with the uncalled violence, but that was alright too.

"Fuck me, look at all this. It's like the Mt. Everest of rice, how in hell am I suppose to eat all of this rice? And why is it only rice!? Can I have some soy-sauce or something?!"

"Jeez, Takeru-chan! Are you a peacock or something? Do you measure your rice intake by counting it!?"

"You shut your mouth, woman. You know I can be a pig god if I wanna be, but I consciously chose not to. Unlike some people."

"Hey! I never get fat! Never, never, never!"

"There has never been a statistical recording of Sumika-san gaining any weight since her awakening." The addition of Kasumi into our argument tipped the scales out of my favour, and a smart man like me always knew when to withdraw.

"But you know what won't make you fat? Exercising. And you know when we're gonna do the most exercising? During that damn skill evaluation thing— ugggggghh~ I don't wanna go outside though!"

"What're you even complaining about anymore, Takeru? I find it hard to believe that you haven't already passed the exam, to be honest." Some unanticipated praise from class rep strangely felt more bemusing than joyful to me.

"But what does that mean? It means work, and I totally hate working in any capacity."

"Then it'll be really unfortunate for you, the exam isn't something you can just sleep through like you do most of the classes. I don't wanna scare you but people have died out there, there won't be any help unless we wanna fail the test."

"That sounds super dangerous and stuff, where is this thing anyway?" There was nothing too mischievous about having the same conversation again but with vastly different responses from me.

"It's on a tropical island somewhere to the south, the whole place is a big jungle." Mikoto added.

"So you're basically saying it's a jungle out there, with disorder and confusion everywhere?"

"Yeah… I guess you can say that, sure." A bit puzzled, but class rep nodded regardless.

"We really have to pass this time, it's our last chance…" A bit of a sombre update brought to us by Mikoto again.

"Suzumiya… Suzumiya…" Now that was a characteristic line from Ayamine used to prick Chizuru like always.

"Ayamine… I don't need you to remind me."

"We're playing catch-up… might not make it."

"And that's why we cannot fail no matter what we do! You understand that too, right Takeru?"

"Yeah, okay. Let's just all look at me for some reason, are my clothes shining?" We got ourselves into a pretty stressful situation all of a sudden, it was obvious this topic still stuck around as a recovering wound in the mind of some members.

"It may very much be an insult to the pride of everyone present for the truth to be observed, however, the three of you persists to be our best chance at success."

"So you all could just be shit outta luck if we're not here to carry you… interesting."

"What do you mean carry? We can walk just fine on our own." Class rep let her inner peasantry run wild for a brief second.

"…Whatever, so remember how I asked you guys about the last time you did the thing and how you completely didn't pass? I wanna know why now."

"…Class rep tried to kill—" I appreciated her enthusiasm to contribute to the discussion, other than what she suggested wasn't the mindset of the group.

"-Someone that's not Ayamine, please." Again, my request was met by that common awkward silence, I was all too used to not having an easy time bringing up the team's previous defeat.

"…We had an ineffective squad leader who couldn't control her team, and subordinates who wouldn't obey orders. That about sums it up." Another age old classic excuse spewed from the direction of class rep.

"Sakaki-san…"

"Wh–why're you bringing this up again?" Tama and Mikoto were both afraid of another fight, I couldn't predict whether the events would transpire as they always did.

"The land mine got us when we obeyed your orders…"

"Ayamine-san too?"

"…There is nothing to be gained from revisiting this argument yet again, we have discussed this topic ad nauseum already." Meiya stepped in as the sensible one in her attempt to cool the heating topic.

"And we agreed it was Sakaki's fault…"

"Says the one who just left the group halfway through the mission!"

"…I'd be the lone survivor if I kept going on my own."

"Cease this pointless debate as of this moment, both of you. Ayamine, you have done nothing to consolidate with your teammates even once during the examination. Sakaki, I believe you shall be held fairly responsible for ignoring the advice of Yoroi, your second-in-command, regarding the landmine."

By Meiya's authoritative remark, the girls all quieted down voluntarily or not.

"Hmm… everyone's just kinda slapping the victim card all over themselves on this matter. Well, it's not really my business since I don't care but does Takeru-chan wants to say something?" Sumika rolled her eyes goofily while dodging out of the conversation to leave me with some serious leadership work.

"Nah, same as you. I don't really care." Reading everyone's expression, especially Chizuru's told me my reply wasn't within their realm of expectation.

"If you don't even care then why ask?"

"I thought it'd be an exciting answer, something like: we couldn't drive the DeLorean pass eighty-eight miles per hour. Or, the liquid nitrogen didn't freeze that T-1000 and now we look super lame. Or, KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNN! But it's none of those, I lost interest."

"Then you just don't have any opinion whatsoever?" Class rep didn't seem to be satisfied when I refused her the criticism she thought I had in mind.

"Well, my opinion is you lot all fucked up, maybe not to the same degree but it's mostly everybody's fault here or there. But that's in the past, right? This time you know to work together for things to end differently. And in worst case scenario, we can be your failsafe."

"Failsafe? What do you mean by this?"

"I hope you realize you won't be the squad leader for much longer? I'm not even insulting you here, class rep, but it's kinda obvious who's gonna be the boss after this. Everyone else kinda agrees, yeah? I don't want this to be awkward."

I took a quick survey to ensure nobody displayed any visual signals against my aspired ascension to the position of Squadron leader, except for Chizuru, of course. She was building up a nice, warm ball of fury in her chest at a slow and steady pace.

"…What!? None of you thinks this is wrong?!" Half angrily and half disappointingly, class rep demanded answers from the rest.

"…Takeru hasn't failed us so far, unlike someone else…"

"Sakaki, you understand that I too wholeheartedly believe in the systemic structure of the military. I will not argue against the commander on site whoever shall it be. Nevertheless, I too support the promotion of individuals who deserve to authorize and issue orders to his or her subordinates. In this particular case, it is Takeru who proven himself to be the most valiant."

I couldn't predict what Chizuru was feeling when she was rejected twice, once by the most reliable member of her team and once by the most unreliable. However, her expression wasn't that of a dispirited soul after accepting a defeat one could not recover from. There still was a fire lit in her eyes, I wanted to believe in that.

"It-it's not like it's a bad thing, Sakaki-san! Being the leader all the time must be tiring, r-right? Think of it like you're taking a break from all the work and just let Takeru-san help you instead!"

"That's good enough… I suppose… but aren't you celebrating just a bit too early, Takeru!? Nothing about this has been decided yet! Don't try to kick me off so soon, you got that!?" That shot of tsundere was what I missed dearly from class rep's personality, and it eased my mind to know she wasn't seriously holding a grudge against me.

It was good enough for the time being, they had already improved so much in such a short period.

"Ha! Ahahaha! You fools shall never overtake me in a million years~!"

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Yokohama base, barracks hallway**

Another regular day was coming to its subsequent end as Meiya was treading carefully through the hallways, keeping her good watchful eye on the pavement below her. The bandage that wrapped around the itching wound on her forehead only added to the salty scar in her heart. The gift left by Kagami was not only traumatic to her pride as a warrior, the remnant still strung her body as her right eye only saw a field of blurred mist causing her steps to wobble.

"… _~Si-side to side~! …_ "

Kagami Sumika was an opponent of equal or even greater strength than Meiya, she understood that painfully through her body. But why was the girl even her nemesis in the first place? This, the samurai did not receive the answer to during their fight. There existed only a vague feeling of her heart that led to the fiction which sparked between those two young women, that feeling of rejection and sorrow Meiya tasted every time her vision landed upon Takeru and Kagami together.

"… _~I seen you before? ~…~I Remember those eyes-eyes~eyes~!_ "

Regarding Takeru himself, Meiya couldn't help but be fascinated by that man. He was almost a complete mystery to the rest of her team, other than herself who was informed in secret about his true rank. That acknowledgement from Takeru on its own already bought a light smile to Meiya's lips, although it again redirected her mind to the idea of how Kagami must know more than she did.

"~ _So dance-dance like it's the last-last night of your life-life—Gon' get you right~!_ "

When Meiya finally realized the faint beat of music vibrating through the air wasn't a trick played on her by her drained sanity she had already pinpointed its source to a room at the end of the hallway. She was confident only cadets from her Company resided in that area of the barracks so it was plainly evident whose room it belonged to.

Self-restraint and respect clashed violently against curiosity in a bloody battle which lasted over decades in the span of a second. At the end, Meiya couldn't contain her inquisitiveness for the unknown. Those foreign lyrics sang to an atypical tempo of melody she never heard before, if she had to guess, the connotation of those electric beats was in complete contrast to everything she was taught during her upbringing.

However, the voice that performed the song she couldn't be mistaken about even in a million years. So Meiya listened devotedly, aided by the sliver of gap in his ajar room door. If only her perception didn't fail her at such a critical time she could easily spy the image on Takeru's screen in clarity.

"~ _Cause baby tonight! ~The DJ got us falling in love again~!_ "

Kagami Sumika's unique song in English accompanied by a bizarre dance Meiya barely caught on the monitor ended before she could decipher a single word in her lines. As for her review, Meiya wasn't sure what to think of something she had never been exposed to prior in her life. Kagami's voice was astounding, that was all she thought of.

"…That was pretty good, honestly pretty good. I like how she's got them dance moves down while singing. …Yeah, that electric voice too, guess it shouldn't be hard for her to change her tone." Soon after the end of the music, Takeru suddenly and strangely began to apparently speak with himself.

"…I really don't know, Sumika likes these future songs but I can't remember them. …You don't have a preference? …That's fine too, not like you even have a taste in music. …You probably know some slav songs, right? …Woah, actually burned me, who'd thought. …What? Today? Today was okay, I wasn't planning on ranting about duties and shit for hours, you wanted that or something?"

Meiya couldn't stop landing herself in utterly outlandish scenarios one after the other that night, or perhaps it was a continuation of the last incident. Nonetheless, Takeru was undeniably amidst a conversation with someone who by some means didn't vocalize their voice for words to be spoken. Either that or the new member of her team had gone crazy, but Meiya only imagined that possibility as the last resort.

"Oh yeah by the way, start working on the XM3 for me, okay? You have all the data it needs, right? …Noice, I want that up and running once we're back from the CCSE. Also, convey the Niigata invasion for me, spin it however you want, but I want a rough estimate of caged Tangos. …Huh? Those two? I don't really care, it's basically the same as dying before my arrival, can't do shit."

The conversation Meiya peeked in on only grew more riveting and riveting as Takeru shared his thoughts out loud, not a shred of concern for potential eavesdroppers. Although it was just the way that man was, his inveterate habit of revealing the secrets of his brain openly was not uncommon for Meiya to witness.

"…Alright, sounds good to me. …Yeah, yeah okay. …Sure, sure love you too, Kasumi. Not get outta my head."

Even Meiya's sober strict self couldn't prevent a crimson blush from surfacing onto her face when she heard Takeru's declaration. The concept of the untold relationship between their talented new recruits ran wild in her head with no boundaries in sight, but Meiya halted her own baseless reverie rather quickly. It was most likely a simple way of greeting for that man, it surely held no deeper meaning than showing his esteem for his good friend.

Satisfied by her own explanation, Meiya stealthily crept away from Takeru's doorway and returned to her original route. On her way back, two subjects of tremendous importance latched onto her thoughts like no other. How was he able to communicate seemingly without any device and why did she so casually assume his talking was a usual quirk of his that made him speak his thoughts.

And one final unsolvable question remained vividly as well; why did she remember Takeru's every action so fondly, as if they had spent lifetimes together in loving intimacy.

—

 **Updated on 09/09/2017**

 **Author's note**

When _Italic text_ appears somewhere in the story, it's either used for thoughts, telepathic thoughts or words in a different language. I know it's confusing, but it shouldn't even matter that much.

If there're inconsistency between the updated chapters and the not updated chapters it's perfectly normal. I'll flush out the bad stuff eventually, for real.

BETA done by chad001


	5. Ch5: Welcome to the jungle-beach

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 11, 2001**

 **PX**

"No, according to the Multiservice tactical brevity code, a _Bogey_ refers to an Unknown contact in view or on radar."

"So it's kinda like a UFO!"

"What, no. A UFO is an Unidentified flying object, meaning anything in the sky that cannot be associated with a traditional aircraft."

"But if a _Bogey_ is something in the sky and I don't know what it is, then it could be a UFO, right?"

"…Negative. In the event where you have visual or a radar ping of the Unknown it should be referred to as a _Bogey_."

"But that doesn't mean a UFO can't be a _Bogey!_ If I don't know what it is then you can't say what it's not!"

"What— stop, Sumika-san, stop. You're wrong, you're incorrect, false, you made a mistake." If Kasumi had a few more layers of aspect to her character she could definitely modify that somewhat stunned expression to a totally unready embarrassment.

"Hey! You can't do that, Kasumi-chan! This time I'm right, you tell her, Takeru-chan!"

"Kasumi, it's like how all thumbs are fingers but not all fingers are thumbs. Sumika's got you there, she isn't wrong." I was an ally of truth and authenticity before a tormentor of the mentally disabled, so even though it pained me to my very core, I must approve Sumika for her evidential fact.

"…I can't accept this… I cannot. UFOs don't even exist…" It appeared our debate was near its deathbed seeing as my diminishing interest was virtually depleted once the two espers begun to argue about the existence of UFOs when we faced an extraterrestrial crisis every second.

And just when we actually made it to our unofficially reserved table at the PX, Mikoto was present to present a spectacularly executed seven-twenty YY nade-cancel knife-flip no scope trickshot with her strings replacing the Intervention… or DSR-50, depending on her MLG preference.

"Ahhhh! My dancing butterfly fell apart! I'll never be able to make that again!" Today was truly a tragic day for humanity.

"…Unlucky."

"Oh, boy, I love open casket funerals!" Sumika's reverence for the dead was creepily skewered, and not in a good way.

"Such a shame, it was truly a magnificent piece…" I was sure the butterfly was very grateful for Meiya's sympathy.

"Hauuuu…"

"Don't get so depressed over a piece of string." Class rep spoke as the sensible man in seeing how foolish Mikoto was.

"But…"

"That aside, will you eat with us? You too as well, Takeru, Kagami and Yashiro." Good for Meiya to notice us, were that not the case I was fully prepared to 'sweep the leg' with Mikoto for running past me without a hello.

—

"-And! How should I say this… then all the pieces suddenly came into my head!" Mikoto was telling the tale of her meeting with the dancing butterfly, destiny had abruptly brought them together and just as abruptly tore them apart.

 _Any day now, ring upon me that buzzzzzzzz and free me._ I was bored out of my mind and my mind was out of this dimension judging by how long it stood idle. This downtime wistfully reminded me of the time when we'd have a scheduled fire alarm evacuation during school back in the old world, that feeling when I was just staring at that red bell knowing it would blast my eardrums any second.

For what it was worth, Kasumi seemed intrigued with sharing her secret Cat's cradle tactics with Mikoto while Sumika was just doing her robot thing.

"~ _My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold~! Until you find it there~ and lead it~… back~… home~…_ " To my pleasant surprise, this was something I could relate to.

" _~Wake m—_ "

 _-~Wake me up~!_ The instant I clearly projected my thoughts into lyrics, Sumika's eyelids sprung up like a mousetrap. However, since she was as close to a professional singer as I'd ever meet, the rhythm of her music wasn't broken by her wonder.

" _~Wake me up inside~!_ "

 _I can't wake up!_

"~ _Wake me up inside~!_ "

"Save me!"

" _~Call my name and save me from—!_ "

What our emergency alert did wasn't exactly saving me from the dark, although the boredom was quite close enough. Also, I totally heard my and Sumika's voice during the last chord and the siren actually saved us in a sense from another annoying excuse to the Squadron.

 **Yokohama briefing room**

 _Kasumi, you passed on the message just like I wrote, right?_

" _Positive, I did not divert from the script even by a single word._ "

 _And remember that I told you what to say, you're like my pigeon, okay._

" _I understand, Takeru-san. I am the messenger._ "

"Okay, I'll explain the situation." Marimo-chan didn't waste a split-second once she perceived the Squadron as assembled.

"At 06:20 this morning, a brigade-sized herd of BETA emerged from the Sadogashima Hive and began to move south along the ocean floor. Then at 06:27, the enemy penetrated the Ocean Defense Line held by the Imperial Navy's fleet in the Sea of Japan and surfaced in Niigata soon after. At 06:48, the Imperial Army's 12th Division encountered the enemy on the old national highway." RIP 12th Division, those dudes were very unfortunately beyond saving.

"07:10, the battle line collapsed before an overwhelming number of BETA after reinforcements failed to arrive in time. The remaining BETA dispersed and moved inland. We lost track of them since the Imperial Army's 14th Division was unable to pursue."

"And then, thirty-three minutes ago… the 14th Division was able to catch up with the BETA herds that had dispersed earlier, they are currently engaging the regrouped BETA forces. However, a part of the BETA hordes had resurfaced in Gunma before that. The second group of BETA is marching at the border of Niigata, Nagano and Gunma prefectures." According to my decaying memory, that was where the Sado Stab ended and my bug friends had to peek their heads out.

"The Imperial Army's 5th and 7th Divisions are currently engaging the second group of BETA. It's an even fight for now. But if the BETA near Mt. Hakkai were to reach the second group it would be a difficult battle for the Imperial Army."

"In addition, it was just predicted that the enemy's objective is… here, Yokohama Base. The Yokohama Base CO has currently declared DEFCON 2. In the case that the Imperial Army retreats, this base will move to DEFCON 1… that means even you cadets will be sent into battle." I was sure that the 5th and 7th Divisions could hold against half a brigade of alien-crawling things, same for whoever was with the A-01.

"Listen carefully… this is not a drill. Our comrades-in-arms are fighting the enemy as we speak, right on our doorstep. I order you eight cadets to arm yourselves and standby until you receive further order!"

With a heart of stone, I saluted Instructor Jinguuji along with the rest of my team before we stepped outside to don our proper gear. Was there guilt lingering in my chest for the lives I couldn't save? Maybe just a scrap of conscience was left for the regret to trickle in. I understood how all lives were worth saving, but not all were equally worthy.

 **Shirogane's room**

In due time, once the Generals and high-ranking officers had confirmed the total destruction of our space foes the DEFCON level was lowered back down to five. Commiserating with cadets who just underwent the first emergency alert of many, Marimo-chan was kind enough to dismiss us on a Sunday morning.

After eating our lunch in complete and uncomfortable silence, my plan was to retreat to my room and receive an update from the Russian girl who would be there with the latest intel on our current situation.

"Kasumi, you talked to Yuuko-sensei?" I spared no second for chit-chat, this was urgent news I had to recognize.

"Yes, A-01 was able to locate the Sadogashima Stab entrance for a potential blockade operation. As for the number of caged Tangos, approximately a large company of two hundred units plus roughly fifty laser units."

"Fuck me, where did they find all those Lux? Was a batch of lasers dudes taking a goddamn nap?" Kasumi said nothing to my rhetorical question.

"Regarding the friendly casualties of A-01; two confirmed K.I.A and W.I.A, 2nd Lieuten—"

"Spare me the dead, don't care about them. Let me guess, it was Asakura and Takahara that got wounded, yeah?" When the course of history only picked a couple of cards to play every round, it was difficult not remembering its hand.

"Positive, 2nd Lt. Asakura received amputation of her left arm to prevent infection. There is no update from 2nd Lt. Takahara in the hospital."

"Well, that's hella unlucky… man, I'm kinda overusing that word these days. I don't… I don't know what to say, do you believe in the cherry blossom and how the ghosts of the dead watch over us from there, Kasumi?" If there was truly a God in our world, I wouldn't place too much of my faith in the guy. However, spirits were a different ideal altogether, it wasn't something too terrible to wish for.

"Yes, the souls of men sometimes linger amongst the living for periods indefinite. I've lived for a long time too, Takeru-san. I've seen phantoms guiding our hands… or haunting our sights…" The gaze which Kasumi dropped on the floor was melancholic and remorseful in ways I couldn't describe, thus I concluded it was best to leave her alone to a sorrow I had no say in.

"…Moving on, I guess. You know anything about what they're planning to do with the tunnel?"

"Nothing concrete… metaphorically concrete."

"How about the XM3? How's that coming along?"

"I need… three more days to finish." It was quicker than I ever expected for her to be capable of alone.

"Okay… okay. Is there anything else you should tell me?"

"Negative." For the moment, my witty cracks weren't doing any good to ease the despondent nature of our circumstances. Even Kasumi appeared to be burdened ever so slightly by the notion of death.

"Here, you can play my Game Guy for a bit. I'll go for a stroll or something, really not much to do."

"If you so desire, we can engage in coitus." She was really inspired to bring that up at the most freakish of timings.

"…Maybe… maybe later."

 **Hallway**

It was not my intention to so coincidentally happen upon the ace of the Valkyries, Hayase Mitsuki while aimlessly wandering the base looking for pastime. Nonetheless, since that savage of a woman was apparently practicing some anger boxing, I found it to be not the worst case to run into her.

"…Fuck…"

Without realization, I lost count of time as I watched her perform the martial exercise. Those hands swathed in white cotton wraps continuously dished out robust jabs, hooks and punches on the sandbag like no tomorrow. Her perspiring back was only hidden by the thin layer of her t-shirt that was already soaked and transparent, strewing the vague smell of her sweat over the gym.

 _No bras… interesting._

"…Fuck, fuckin' fuck… fuck! Fucking goddamnit! You idiots! AAH!"

Finishing her combo with a powerful uppercut, Hayase sent the punching bag launching into the air, pivoting by the chains that locked it in place. Knowing that woman was all brawls and no brain, it was to nobody's surprise for the sixty-something pounds bag to swing down and totally plough her away like a fly. So, very fortunately for me she flew right into my face and crashed both of us on the ground.

"-Agalalala!" While I wouldn't consider Hayase a landwhale, she was definitely no Barbie girl either.

"Agra—! What the-! Who're you!?"

"Just please, get off me. You kinda stink, lady." Mentioning her odour was a lightning fast way to gain some distance from the Valkyrie.

"Alright, alright! But who're you!? How long you've been there!?"

"How does it feel to be Hank Aaron's 715th home run, lady? You sure sailed the same distance." I too climbed off the matted floor was and greeted by the anger fueled Hayase only a few feet away from me.

"I've never seen you here before, soldier! State your name and rank immediately!"

"Cadet Shirogane Takeru of Training Squadron 207, ma'am." I gave her a hasty salute since describing our initial meeting as improper was a major understatement.

"Cadet? I see… well, Cadet Shirogane, how long have you been there?"

"About five minutes, I believe."

"Okay… I'm 1st Lt. Hayase Mitsuki, sup." She put even less effort into military gesture than I did, and that was saying a lot.

"Hello to you too, Lieutenant."

"Alright, so about what happened, let's not talk about it. And you shouldn't talk about how you saw me here, we clear?"

"Sure, of course, Lieutenant." Being respectful for a change wasn't all bad, especially since it'd be the last time I stood below her.

"Glad we solved it then, now get outta here, Cadet."

"Be on my way." So I turned to leave, and took a bunch of steps too.

"Wait! Hold up, Shirogane… you- err… you think we'll see each other again, young man?"

"Maybe sooner than you think, ma'am."

 **November 16, 2001. CCSE Day 1**

 **A southern island**

 _I ever talk about how I sunk a nuclear sub once?_ It was true.

" _That was during the Battle of Mann on July fifteen, 2010. Takeru-san dived after two Vanguard class SSBNs of the Royal Navy and—_ "

 _-Kasumi, can you like- let me tell my story?_

" _Oh, what, really!? Wait, why wasn't I there if Kasumi-chan remembers?_

 _Because bitch you're ded as shit, obviously._

" _Hey! That's so mean! It's uncalled for!_ " Ask stupid question, get stupid answer.

 _Anyway, the two subs were called V something and V some-other-thing. They had nukes loaded into some Trident IIs and were trying to send it to Quebec, to the French, basically. Can't remember who I fought for and how we caught them but we did, and then we deployed to intercept the fleet by the Isle of Man._

" _We sure fight other humans a lot, huh._ " That was the one iron truth of our world. If the BETA were gone, humanity wouldn't have any trouble finding new enemies.

 _Only if we don't like them, but then we don't like anyone. Any~way! We shot, they shot, I probably shot more than they did. Ended up having to dive after the submarines for a couple kilometres in a TSF to fill it up with HE shells, although it was suited for underwater combat like a TSA… shit, what was I flying that time?_

" _Rafale F3R Modified._ "

 _Oh, yeah… I was with the Frog boys that time! That's right! We're re-enacting the hundred years war with TSFs and nukes! Good times, good times. UN was gone by then, so we were backed by the Americans and British by the Russians. I remember now! Also dated a blonde chick in the military. That short little thing… damn it what's her name?_

"… _Bernadette Le Tigre De La Rivière._ " Kasumi's mental pronunciation in French was more accurate than I could ever hope to match.

 _Right, thanks. What a fucking mouthful though, I always wanted to try a blonde sometime in my life, was not disappointed. It was also hella hard to raise her flags too, French Tiger was very against crossbreeding and experimenting, super proud of her lineage and stuff. I didn't even nail her for that long, she died during the battle._ It saddened me for the time, tragic even. My encounters with blondes was a rare encounter in itself.

" _She was killed via an extended Blade Motor cutting horizontally across the cockpit, the incision was made right over the abdomen region. However, her purple Rafale didn't explode afterwards and her body fell into the ocean._ "

… _What a bloody shame, never forget, the only blonde I remember tapping. By the way, where were you during that fight, Kasumi? Sorry, my memories are kinda bad._ It was almost outlandish how I didn't recall my precious Kasumi at one of the most critical wars during that time-era.

" _I was with the 227th Experimental Tactical Armoured Battalion."_

 _Hold up, I never heard of that from the French or US._

" _I served with the 'Glavnoye Razvedyvatel'noye Upravleniye Generalnovo Shtaba'._ " She was absolutely, undeniably, intentionally speaking Russian to piss me off. And those long line of very complicated words made me blank out on any of the details.

" _...Woah, now I'm really upset I missed all this fun! Why don't you say it properly for Takeru-chan so his dumb brain can understand, Kasumi-chan?_ " The quantum computer pulled a fast one on me by understanding more languages.

" _I served with the SPETSNAZ GRU during the battle of Mann, we were part of the Royal Navy unit escorting the Vanguard class SSBNs Victorious and Vigilant. En route we were intercepted by the French Army's 13th Tactical Dragoon Regiment and the United States Army's 66th and 42nd Tactical Armoured Battalions, Hunter and Misfit; along with a detachment of unknown operators from USSOCOM's_ _SFOD-D._ "

… _Holy… shit, we… err… so like you were on the Russian side and we fought against each other, Kasumi? I'm really, actually sorry about that. I-I didn't know._ I was again shown how the twists of fate were truly unpredictable even to this extent, how could anyone believe that Kasumi and I had once been adversaries fighting under two opposite banners.

" _That is incorrect, Takeru-san. I was the one who killed Bernadette. You knew at the time I was there during the battle, we dueled over the ocean for hours before you breached my cockpit—_ "

 _-Okay…!? so Tiger was done in by you? See now I don't feel so bad anymore—_

"- _You breached my cockpit and proceeded to crush me in your TSF's hand._ "

… _I think we should stop switching team mid-game, my dude._

—

Kasumi ran off the boat as eager steps printed her mark on the sandy beach of a deserted island. Looking toward the vast, beautiful ocean with gleeful eyes of a child, how long had it been since that petite rabbit last perceived so much blue in her life? I probably could never certainly grasp how arduous her torment was when she trailed behind me on my journey through the multiverse, same could be said for Sumika as well, was their torture even worse than mine?

Still, seeing her artificial rabbit ears twitch in genuine excitement relieved me of that anxious worry, just because it accommodated for the lack of emotion she showed on her face, Kasumi had every right to prove her own existence as much as everyone else.

"Oh, you're finally here? I've been waiting. How was the boat ride, Yashiro? Come over here." The Yuuko-sensei that greeted us in her purple bikini emphasized Kasumi's arrival more than the rest of us.

Another funny thing I noticed just then, that Russian loli was the reason we weren't sent to the exam site via human torpedoes shot by some not-nuclear submarines. Apparently, sensei had the decency to care for Kasumi's health so every time she tagged along for the CCSE we had a relaxing boat ferry us instead.

"Here you go, this's the mission stuff, take it to your friends. And this's your own backpack, don't lose it when you're out there, think of it as my sponsorship. Stay safe now." Hence, Kasumi came back to us with the bags of equipment and her own exclusive backpack. She gave the map and the utility belt for class rep to distribute to the rest of us.

"Orders received, ma'am."

"Well, do your best and try not to get killed."

"…Understood."

"If it gets really bad, use the radio in your bags. Of course, that means failing the exam. Or you could just get Shirogane to do everything, a safer method." There was no such thing as bad publicity, particularly when it was good publicity.

"How reliable, Takeru. We will be in your care if the worst come to past." Class rep lightly patted my shoulder, not like I wasn't willing to give them a hand.

"Alright, boys. I hate camping and I hate nature, but let's do this thing anyway."

"At least your attitude is passable. Here, your equipment."

"What's this piece of shit. You guys wanna go dumpster-diving with me next time? We can find something better."

"Want to swap with my belt kit?" The kind and generous Mikoto offered an exchange between the crappy belt and the shitty belt.

"Nah, it's fine. I will work with it."

"That's enough chit-chat. We'll now review your operational objectives… wait, Yashiro, where did you get that backpack?" Marimo-chan stopped her briefing when Kasumi got spotted with her hacks on.

"It's from Professor Kouzuki, she is my sponsor."

"Sponsor…? What does she even… hold on, I'll be right back." The Instructor jogged over and was quickly defeated by Yuuko-sensei's infinite wisdom.

"Okay. It's a lucky break for you cadets this time, Yashiro received a care package from the Professor and I'll allow it. Continuing on with the overview; during this operation, you had no choice but to…" And then I completely blanked out as Marimo-chan wouldn't shut up about how ridiculously impossible that scenario was.

"-That is all the information you have at the present time. Are there any questions?" My head fished nothing outta my imagination.

"Synchronize your watches. Fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifteen-nine… —Operation Start!" Marimo-chan released us to be one with nature.

"Understood!" We got together to brainstorm some pro-strats.

"From the looks of it, we don't have the time to go one location at a time as a group."

"Let's split into three groups."

"How shall we divide this uneven lineup?" It was Meiya who first made a comment that differentiated from the script followed by Mikoto and Chizuru.

"Good team-comp is very important my dudes. Even though IRL has a high TTK so team-shot isn't too strong, we don't have any mini-map to help us. Also, can I just say this map is totally shit? It's like playing Summoner's Rift but instead of having three lanes and jungles on the inside you have three jungles with jungles on the inside."

"Takeru… more than fifty percent of your attempts at communication results in miscommunication." It was only because Meiya wasn't even ranked Gold.

"Whatever, I recommend the teams be me with Mikoto. Meiya, class rep with Tama and Sumika, Kasumi with Ayamine. Sounds good?"

"It doesn't look too bad, is there a reason you organized it like this?" It'd be mind-boggling for anyone to reject my proposal, but even more so if I let them reject it.

"I dunno, to be honest. We got eight dudes here, Mikoto's good at outdoor shit so I'll stick with her since I hate it. And then two pairs of you want to kill each other in their sleep so we should separate those ones, that's about it, really."

"Okay… anyone that opposes Takeru's suggestion?" It was with surgical precision that I pinpointed the best possible team-comp in the history of competitive gaming.

"Alright, I'll trust you two with the hardest objective since you're so confident. My team will take A-point and I'll leave C-point to you guys, Kagami."

"Kay-kay! Then I say we should meet back again there!" Sumika happily participated in the strategizing, pointing at the tallest hill on the island for our location of rendezvous.

"Good call, Kagami. Let's strive to be there by the third day. We need to leave as much time as possible to get to the evac."

"Agreed. With that done should we peek into Kasumi-chan's backpack?" At the recognition of Kasumi's secret stash, she demonstrated a fearful appearance and hugged her bag closely to her chest.

"But… this is my stuff, you can't have my stuff."

"Oh, geez what a selfish girl, Kasumi-chan! Stop being so cheap and share!"

"But I don't wanna share." The Russian esper who had theoretically killed hundreds of people was surprisingly childish, but not as childish as the theoretical extinction event who just ripped the bag away from her.

"Aaah… Sumika-san is a bad person."

"~Wooow! Check this out, everyone! Look at all this loot!" On that account, it was very much raining goodies.

Stashed away inside a rugged backpack was an array of survival necessities sensei stocked away for her favourite student. A tube of sunscreen, a pair of sunglasses, a flashlight, a lighter thing that was like a stick, a few bottles of water and a whole lotta snacks. If she had any more candy Kasumi could be seen as going on a school field trip instead.

"It's mine… please don't steal it."

"…An incredible stroke of good fortune or to compensate for the difficulty of this evaluation, that I do not know. However, the Professor has prepared this wide range of additional welfare to Yashiro's benefit, it is not our place to pillage her commodities."

"But even if you say that Yashiro's got two times the ration and water. It's enough to last her the entirety of the six days. She could afford to share at least half of the edibles in her backpack."

"But I don't really think Yashiro-san can last as long as we do on the same amount of food. Not to be mean or anything… Yashiro-san doesn't look too sturdy." Somehow, the advantage of having extra stuff was turning the situation sour.

"Yashiro-san, do you think you'll need all of this food and water?" Tama inched over to the fellow short loli and kindly asked for her opinion.

"I don't know… but I don't wanna eat snakes… or frogs… or carrots."

"…A hoarder then…"

"Ohmygod stop being so stringy, Kasumi-chan! Give us the sunscreen first, you can share that at least, right?" The privileged one swiftly nodded, squeezing a bit of the lubricant into everyone's palms.

"Nope, I don't want it. Miss me with that gay shit." Except I didn't accept her lube because no real man should be slimy.

"Sakaki, do you earnestly believe it is mandatory for us to loot Yashiro's necessities?"

"Well… she's not the only one who doesn't like eating snakes."

"I personally do not believe we require this abundant supply of rations if the evaluation goes according to plan, and in any case, the food must be more vital to Yashiro than the rest of us."

"But you know, Kasumi-chan's gotta get used to this sorta stuff eventually. Back when we were doing our thing together she also avoided all the physical training too." Meiya was covering for the little guy more than Sumika tried to, the 00 Unit could be scarily cold-hearted at random times for minimal reasons.

"Psst, psst, Kasumi. Over here, over here." I gestured for the troubled undercover Jew to sneak away from their heating argument.

"Yes, Takeru-san?"

"So listen, I see that you really hate doing this survival thing and I can understand your pain. How about this, gimme one bottle of water and bribe Ayamine with something too so you two can set off early. Ditch Sumika, she's a robot anyway, can't die in the jungle."

Virtually with feverish passion, Kasumi nodded. Immediately she willingly surrendered a plastic bottle of water to me and jogged merrily over to Ayamine, pulling the stoic girl's hand down to whisper secrecy into her ears. Not a while after the taller of the two gave a sly nod and together disappeared into the woods.

"Mikoto, Yoroi Mikoto. Let's go, on me." Following suit, I then slipped through the debating mob to yank Mikoto out of the fun by her collar and towed her away to our objective.

 **The jungle**

"Buzz— buzz— be advised, I've spotted an active trip-mine to your ten O'clock, over."

"Buzz— buzz— roger, roger, will disarm, over."

"Buzz— buzz— good work, over."

"Buzz— buzz— roger that, continuing, over."

"Buzz— buzz— I'm getting bored now, let's end this, over."

"Buzz— buzz— but how do we do that, Takeru? Over."

"Buzz— buzz— you have to say 'out', over."

"Buzz— buzz— out, over- oh-wait—"

"-Buzz— buzz— over, out."

"Is this really how radio commutation used to work? It's really a bit annoying." Annoying was right, thankfully surface fighter pilots were no longer required to talk like doofuses.

Traversing this thick forest had its ways of draining the fun out of all aspects of hiking, and it became especially apparent for me since I literally never went on a single hike in my entire life.

As for our progress, there really wasn't much tension of failing. At least personally for me, the geographic layout of that island was printed well in my head, maybe only behind my map knowledge of Dust II.

"Takeru, Takeru. How're you finding all these traps so easily!?"

"I mean, do you not see them too?"

"Well, Yes I do but it's usually after you point them out first."

"That's cuz I'm taller than you womanlet, it ain't got that complication involved, B."

"~Hahaha! Takeru does talk funnily, just like the others said." There was no cure for her autism yet from modern medical science.

"You not understanding my scripture is a serious insult to my holy status, and being insulted makes me hella thirsty, hold up."

"Takeru, you're drinking too much water already! We won't know when we're gonna find another water source, you should conserve more of the water!"

"You shut up, don't try to limit my H2O intake, that's how kids in Africa die by the buckets. Speaking of not dying… check it. Right over there, by that cavern. You see it? Behind that tree to your left." Fortunately, our aimless ramble had somehow led us right in front of the target. It had to be some kind of miracle that we stumbled upon this location by pure luck.

"Huh? Where?"

"Look to your left, no, the other left… and a bit higher…"

"Oh, yeah, Takeru. I can see it now!" She excitingly peeked over a tall bush that was blocking her sightline and gained the opportunity to view the world from the same angle as I did.

"Damn son it's hella late already, let's just settle down for tonight. We'll hit this thing tomorrow and do whatever then."

"Alright, I'll set up a fire for us." Mikoto was a pretty agreeable guy, she had a way of going about doing stuff that was agreeable.

 _Fucking camping… goddamnit sleeping outside like some barbarian… bitch fuck…_

"…This shit won't even be useful, fuckin' implying I'd be shot down, ever…"

"Ahh… aha-haha, does that mean you're not a big fan of the evaluation, Takeru?" Awkwardly, Mikoto dryly laughed off my cursing when it drifted into her earshot. In a sense, I was as mentally retarded as everyone else with how often I talk outwardly by accident.

"Just- don't worry about it, drink some water and get to bed, let's not waste time."

—

"Takeru, Takeru, are you asleep?"

"Yes."

"Oh okay then, so are you still angry that we have to go through the exam?" This woman wouldn't pick up a hint if it rocket-punched her right in the kisser.

"Listen, I don't like the outside, okay? That's not a joke- I used to live luxuriously, in many places too. It bothers me to hang around and jerk off all day to basic training." Whenever Mikoto and I were alone, her calming aura and chilled personality had that magical effect of loosening my tongue, and not in a weird way.

"But you gave up the draft exempt and joined the army, right? I think that's really brave of you."

"Yep, that's a fact. I could've lived a peaceful life… but then this whole BETA shit happened. After that, I could've lived a comfy life… but it cost me too much, there were some things I couldn't let go…" My blind blathering went too far too soon it became undecipherable despite coming from my mouth.

"Takeru, that sounds pretty tough. But I'm happy… that you're here, that you can be with us."

"…Yeah? Same, same."

 **November 167 2001. CCSE Day 2**

One would think a six-day CCSE on an abandoned island should be stack full of gruelling endeavours one after another, where we'd exchange our blood and sweat for the highest score possible. To be fair, what happened the first time I experienced the evaluation was just that, but the same as playing one game repeatedly on a flight without internet, burning out from the sheer boredom of it all wasn't too uncommon.

"Looks clear, Takeru. You seeing anymore?"

"I listen to the earth, the forest, the dirt… and they reply to me… 'leaveeeeee~ thereeeee issss nothinggggg forrr youuuu hereeeeee~!'."

"If the escape path is clear, should we do some more recon of the area before approaching? You said you want to infiltrate at night, right?"

"Did you know the tallest breed of trees is the Sequoia sempervirens? It's true, commonly called coastal redwood, they are an evergreen monoecious species of trees that live from twelve hundred to eighteen hundred years. In fact, the current tallest tree in the world is one of them measuring up a hundred fifty-five metres in the Redwood National Park, California."

"If we only had some kind of binoculars we can see clearly into the hangar and know what we should grab. We also don't have a viable way of destroying the entire place unless there's something there we can use."

"I think my single favourite artist of all time is Bob Ross, the guy that hosted 'The Joy of Painting'. Best tv marathon I ever watched, what a nice and peaceful man. He even served in the US Air Force, fortunately for the universe he didn't die or anything before becoming a painter."

"I'm a bit thirsty, just give me a minute." Mikoto savoured some water from her own canteen.

"…It was once said that—"

"-Oh, Takeru, look! A pond turtle! I wonder if it'll taste good."

 _Fuck it, I can't compete against this, I just can't. This bitch's oblivion is way too strong to ever think around trumping. This's like a dick measuring contest except we're measuring how inwardly grown it is._

"I'm heading back to take a nap now, call me when night falls."

"Alright, sure. I think I'll roam around a bit more and look for any leftover traps. You know which way the camp is at? Getting lost in this jungle would be the last thing we want!"

 _Please, I fuckin' love you girl, but Mikoto just shut the fuck up you dumb insensible little shit._

"Yeah, don't worry man. I'll be fine. Wake me when you need me, so don't wake me."

—

"Takeru, psst…! Wake up Takeru!"

"…Hmm, yeah, boy. What you need?" I never slept well under daylight, it was a bit too bright.

"It's eleven O'clock already, do you think we should go?" Or it was just Mikoto's makeshift torch that she held right over my face.

"Uh-huh, clean this shit up and get ready." I watched Mikoto carefully pile leaves and dirt onto campfire, extinguishing it before scrambling the branches and ashes.

An exciting and intense twenty minutes walk ensued.

"Area looks clear, let's take a look around for anything useful."

"Alright, cool." So I waited while Mikoto was running around poking at anything and everything with her curiosity, the massive downtime obviously hastened my metabolism and caused severe dehydration to plague my body.

 _Man, am I thirsty… indeed, I am very thirsty, why thank you._

"Takeruuu~! Come over here!" I was in the middle of quenching my thirst when Mikoto pulled my attention.

"Yo, you seeing some good shit?"

"Look, Takeru. There's a Humvee here! But its engine block is gone though, let's grab that tarp on top instead."

"Solid ideas, using your brain that much must have made you thirsty too. Here, drink water, it's good for you." I thrust my canteen into Mikoto's stupid open mouth and force-fed her a couple gulps of water, her initial resistance quickly died down and she slurped away with joy. I shouldn't be surprised at her willingness to share an indirect kiss, but its casualness did create a marginal sense of insecurity.

"Okay, thanks Takeru."

"…Anyway, what else are we looking at here?"

"Not much, actually. There's electricity running here but… ah, wait! There's gasoline in those drums, we can use it to rig the entire place up as a gasoline bomb!"

"Now we're thinking with portals, let's set that up. But first, give me your canteen." A bit confused, Mikoto nevertheless handed over her water bottle, I was steady in pouring the remaining liquid from my container to hers as her puzzlement only grew in size.

"I'mma fetch some fuel before you spread them all, yeah?"

"Ahh… I guess, since yours is empty now we can use it." Most agreeable kid.

—

"~I wanna celebrate to live my life~! Saying anal, ~gotta let's go~! I throw my hands up in the air sometimes~! Singing A-hole, ~baby let go~!"

"Takeru… you're being really loud…!"

"~Cuz we gon' rock this club, ~cuz we gon' go all night, ~cuz we gon' light it up, ~like it's dynamite~! …Like it's d—" Literally the definition of garbage timing, Similar to how the only time I ever got a porn popup on my screen was when my parents were looking.

"Likeitsdynamite~!" The night sky was riddled by sparkles of the brilliant fire, seeing it amidst the darkness really was an altogether different experience.

"Woah! That wasn't too bad at all since we improvised the explosive!"

"Pretty good stuff, my dude. Let's go now, if we had imaginary enemies around they be woke as hell."

Carrying swiftness and speed in our every step, we retreated from the objective area as stealthily and quickly as possible. A while afterwards, I had the pleasant chance to be reunited with the first foe that stood in the way of my grand plan, the first trial I must overcome in order to fully emerge as a man.

"~Hello darkness, my old friend~… I've come to talk with you again~"

"Ah! Be careful Takeru! That snake is venomous, get bitten and you'll be in a lot of trouble."

"But I bet you didn't know I enjoy trouble the most! Get over here, you gay little shit!"

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **November 18, 2001. CCSE Day 3**

 **The Jungle**

" _~What a thrill… ~with darkness and silence through the night…_ "

The snake crept, serpentining over the mud. The predator that always sat near the top on the food chain was unaware of when it had become the prey.

"~ _What a thrill… ~I'm searching and I'll melt into you… ~What a- fear in my heart, ~but you're so supreme~…!_ "

"Just a bit more… c'mon…"

" _~I give my life! ~Not for honor, but for you~! …In my time, there'll be no~ one~ elseeee~! Crime…~! It's the way~ I fly~ to you~!_ "

"Just… sit still… dinner…"

" _I'm still~… ~in a dream~! ~Snake Eater~…!_ "

"…Score. Hisssssss— to you too."

—

"You see, Ayamine-san. It's important to properly skin its leather and clean out its insides before trying to cook it, curry powder just makes your mouth numb, doesn't solve the real problem."

Sumika was dedicated to showing off her expertise at preparing cuisine even when she faced the most basic ingredient. Kei kneeled closely beside her, watching her every move as she severed the snake's head and sliced a clean cut down its stomach to peel away the skin and scoop out its intestines.

"Huh… we weren't taught that." Sumika had skewered the snake onto a sharp branch and left it on the campfire to cook.

"I had more advanced survival training before coming here, you could say that I'm… pretty good."

"Pretty… good. Let's eat." Thus, the two young soldiers tore apart the paper wrapping of the energy bars and happily chomped them down.

"…My food, I hate you, Sumika-san." Sumika's feeling of guilt was easily overwhelmed by her satisfied belly, tuning herself to remove hunger wasn't a difficult adjustment, but also unnecessary when she had a surplus of nourishment to spare, for herself.

"…The snake stares at you, Yashiro… your dinner is served."

"Ayamine-san… traitor, you betrayed me. I'll never forgive you."

" _Et me, Brute._ "

Kasumi's stare of death didn't seem to intimidate Kei all that much judging by how wily she was eating the former girl's provisions, the provisions which she offered to share in exchange for a safe escort away from Sumika, but when the vengeful 00 Unit caught up the cunning Kei had no issues switching sides.

"C'mon, Kasumi-chan. We all went through worse."

 _Like that time when we were stranded on the great salt-plain of Canada and ran into the cannibals, and Takeru-chan saved the last piece of canned food for you? Remember what he had to eat? Should I keep going?_

Just because she didn't visually express herself didn't mean Sumika couldn't notice the disgust and cringe rising in Kasumi's chest, behind the two espers and their saviour was years nobody desired to recall in the slightest. The horrible days when they chased the carrot dubbed as hope on a stick held by destiny.

" _You're right, let's not talk about it._ " Kasumi solemnly cast her gaze downwards, picked up the snake and ate in silence.

"…Good girl… good girl."

—

Would Sumika count her trek across the jungle as tedious? Sure. However, she couldn't say it was a strenuous slog with a straight face. After all, whether or not they fit the description, her and the time travelling bunch were still cadets according to the military ranks. That gave them the right to take things easy for the time being, knowing that time wouldn't last forever.

"So Kasumi, how did the snake taste?"

"…Taste like sadness."

"You'll be happy once you get used to that, fight fire with fire."

Around late afternoon of the third day was when Sumika's team made it to the rendezvous, there Takeru's Element had already set up camp and was preparing some less than desirable meals containing mostly of leaves and mushrooms. Kasumi was slowly rotting away from the dreadful nature of being forced to eat wild grass for survival, and Sumika herself wasn't too thrilled either.

They passed the night in short chats, waiting for Chizuru's group to arrive.

 **November 19, 2001. CCSE Day 4**

At the break of dawn echoes of wobbly footsteps rushing and staggering through the thick woods caught the attention of the campers, Takeru was the first to take charge and explore the unknown lands with Sumika following close after. Although in the end, their cautious exploit resulted in a fairly lacklustre discovery of Chizuru's team.

"A bit late, boys, a bit late. How's it goes?"

"Not much, Mitsurugi got hit in the face by a branch. Apparently, her eye isn't working too well." Hearing about Meiya's accident, Sumika was struck by a wave of remorse. The blame was hers for their duel the week before, she didn't think her wound would take so long to heal.

"Is that a slander towards me, Sakaki?"

"Don't misunderstand, I'm only telling the truth."

"Alright forget about that, what we got, kids? Show off your Christmas presents." Taking her cue, Sumika proudly hauled the Barrett she and her crew found from their objective.

"Look! We found an M95, although it only got a single round. And this map very conveniently marking the location of the evac!"

"Damn that is convenient. My people got this tarp, I dunno it's pretty flat, I guess. Oh, also some gas, in case you wanna immolate some dude, I'm all for it." The general census was to shake heads at Takeru and ignore him.

"We found a grappling rope, could come in handy soon."

"Great, good hustle overall, my dudes. Let's get moving then."

—

"I see a cliff up ahead! There's a river below." In time, the collected Squadron had progressed to a cliffside that was cut through by running water over the period of countless years.

"Going around this would be a waste of time. Ayamine, tie this rope to the other side."

"Aye."

In the time it took Kei to climb down the valley, hop over the river and scale another cliff the weather had turned for the worse, dumping buckets and buckets of rainwater down rinsing the soldiers wet.

 _Takeru-chan… you know how you used to avoid the rain by being smart? What happened to that?_

" _You happened, you stupid shit, now shut up. We'll go by the OG plan._ "

—

 _Takeru-chan, they're doing the rope vs gun battle again._

" _Good for them, it's always a fun fight._ " Takeru wasn't at all concerned for the argument pestering the rest of his teammates as he kneeled over by Kasumi, both of them studying the ground to draw letters and numbers.

"Look, no you're not drawing it right, Kasumi. It's ABCDEFGHIJKLM on the top and the rest on the bottom, under that is 1 to 0 and GOOD BYE. You know what, find me a piece of fancy-looking rock and let me do this." Kasumi nodded and left, only to return not a minute later holding a smooth piece of stone in her hands.

"Are you really making an Ouija board in the mud? It's not gonna last long, I mean- it's raining right now, Takeru-chan!" Again, Takeru did not even raise his head to speak to Sumika.

"You're hella annoying woman, c'mon it'll be fun, have you ever used an Ouija board? I don't think so."

"Emm, guess that true. So what're we doing?" No one ever claimed Sumika was interested in her squad's debate either.

"Kasumi, give me the rock… and now we just have to summon a ghost to talk to, watch this sick chant."

"I know the chant too, let me help you." Sumika wasn't sure if she should shake her head at their silliness or laugh and play along to Takeru's games.

"~ _Eekum Bokum Eekum Bokum Boodagabo Boodagabo! Eekum Bokum Eekum Bokum Eekum Bokum dududa!_ "

As Takeru and Kasumi waved their arms around frantically and probably mocking an entire culture of people for his joke, the rest of his friends had caught onto the eccentric performance and gathered by the trio to watch in bewilderment.

"…I can't even use words to describe what they're doing right now."

"Likewise, a most peculiar activity indeed."

"Is Takeru trying to summon a spirit or something? I never saw a ritual like this before!"

"…They lost it."

"…All of you, shut up! I finally got a friendly ghost and now I'll ask it one single question! Listen to me, ghost! When will this rain stop!?"

"Ooooooooh, tell us, Ghost-san. Oooooooooh." So far in her life, that was the most unenthusiastic 'ooh' Sumika ever heard.

When the stone laying on top of the deteriorating board made no effort to slide in any direction, Takeru very casually pushed that rock from the centre to the number two with his left hand, leaving behind a drag mark and destroying half of the board.

"And the spirit says two! Twooooooo~!"

"Thank you, Ghost-san. Goodbye." They stopped chanting, and then it was over.

"Alright boys, let's wait for the rain to stop in two hours, and another two for the water to go down. Now someone set up that tarp for shelter."

"What- excuse me, what? Do you honestly expect me to believe that you communicated with a spirit and it told you when the rain will stop?! You're making a mockery of all of us, Takeru!" Red-faced and angry, Chizuru shouted harshly at Takeru for his… whatever it was he did.

"Hahaha~! JK, actually the weather should clear up in two. If it doesn't I'll give you one million dollars, wait- sorry, I mean _~one ~million ~dollars._ " The second time, Takeru put this pinkie to mouth and spoke in English.

"Guess we might as well hang out for four hours then, not like it's a major time lost, right, Sakaki-san? This kinda rain is a quick shower, should let up pretty soon. Besides, if Takeru-chan turns out to be a big idiot instead we can make the decision then, also you can get ~ _one million dollars_." Sumika was there to support Takeru when it counted, so naturally very rarely did she concur to his suggestions.

"…Haa… you people are such weirdos all around… whatever, Squadron! We'll take four hours break here!"

Following that, the events of the future lined up with Takeru's prophecy down to a tee.

 **November 20, 2001. CCSE Day 5**

" _It's time… to fuckin' kill myself, girls. Literally favourite part of the CCSE._ "

 _Have a safe trip, Takeru-chan! We'll throw some sand at you if it gets too close!_

" _Don't trip on your shoelaces, Takeru-san._ "

The proceeding scene of Takeru waving his flare to signal for the evac helo, followed by him coming under fire from the auto turret and retreating back behind the rock formations involved no sand throwing or tripping on shoelaces.

"Holy fucking shit…! I joked about this being too easy but fucking trying to blast me into outer space!? Going too far, too far, Professor!"

"Ah geez! What a mess that was, you're not hurt anywhere are you?" Sumika gave Takeru a fast check for any injuries he wasn't aware of under the influence of adrenaline that came with being shot at by a sea of explosive rounds.

"—Howdy. You guys still alive over there?" A bit after everyone commented on the unfortunate but foreseeable turn of events, Kouzuki radioed the Squadron to inform them of an update she pretended to be improvised.

"…Well, you all heard her. The new Evac point will be right behind the gun battery."

"Sensei really pulled a fast one on us. Still, this is her style, doesn't make her less of a bitch, but expected."

"I think so too, this feels exactly like something the Professor would do." Miki agreed easily.

"However, while the Professor trolled us like mad, I got some positive news here. I saw a rib boat back there when I was waving the flares earlier, looks intact and lucky for us we have some fuel."

"Wait… does that mean we can go straight to the evac?"

"Not so fast, Tamase. We go onto the sea we'll be ripped to shreds by that gun battery, we have to destroy it first." The team pondered for a good long period without an answer, it wasn't until Takeru pointed out the strange white ball thingy that they realized what the radome was for.

"Huh? Yeah, there's a… radome over there… Ayamine-san, give me the rifle! I'll check it out with the scope!" After another short discussion on how to utilize the new information, the squad decided it'd be the wisest to fire on the radome and hope for the best.

"Alright, I'm gonna shoot it. Please stand clear!"

Miki laid prone on the ground, gradually unfolding the bipod of her sniper rifle and fixing her posture to accommodate on the rocky surface. She accurately adjusted the knobs and dials on the scope to perfectly zero out her shot, as any proficient sniper should be capable of.

"… _Like her hands, she reaches out, and she touches her mark… a gentle tap. The bullet touches its mark just as she intended, should only need one shot._ " Inexplicably, Kasumi murmured a lucid notion to herself that was loud enough for Sumika to notice.

 _Kasumi-chan? Whacha talking about?_

" _It's nothing… I admire Miki-san's skill, she is truly one of the best snipers of our time. She's the reason I stopped extreme range shooting and practiced more marksmanship on moving targets._ " Sumika reflected on her best friend's reveal, but said nothing more.

" _The struggle, Kasumi. I remember I was once on the receiving end of Tama's bullets, 0/10, would not recommend._ "

"Target destroyed!" Miki's announcement of success interrupted the time-traveller's undisclosed conversation.

"Let's test it right away… Kei-san, Meiya-san, give me a hand!" Mikoto called for Meiya and Kei to accompany her as they went to check on the status of the turret, soon afterwards she returned to confirm the deactivation of their number one threat.

"Alright, now all there is left is to cross the ocean and we will be done. Let's get ready and go."

"Hold your horses, boys. I say we wait for nightfall, that way if there're baddies in the ocean we'd be a bit more discreet instead of crossing under bright daylight.

"…Good point, Takeru. We'll set off after dark, everyone!"

—

"Not gonna lie, I was worried Sumika's fat ass would sink us the second we got on."

"Hey! Only fat people call others fat! You're the fatty here! Stop being such a fatty, you big overweight obese person!" A strong rebuttal, if Sumika did say so herself.

"Enough already! Keep it down and keep a watch out, Ayamine almost made it to the top." Kei had always been the nimblest of them all, even Sumika had trouble competing against her in tightrope walking or obstacle courses. This time was no different either, a couple of leaps and climbs was all it took for her to reach the top of a twenty-metre cliff.

One by one, each member of Squadron 207 all scaled the craggy ledge and pulled themselves to the top. Even Kasumi who had the hardest time climbing anything didn't waste too long pulling herself up the rope, Sumika was honestly pretty impressed by how closely she kept up with her teammates in terms of stamina.

At the finish line, there greeted them was Instructor Jinguuji and a CH-46 Sea Knight under a giant piece of camouflage sheet with its blades folded in.

"Evaluation complete! Squad 207B, form up!" Following order, the Company fell in line.

"This Comprehensive Combat Skill Evaluation is hereby complete. You've all done well. I will now inform you of the result." The team carried an anxious mood with them, while the future seers were just relaxing and waiting for the clock to tick on.

"Your choice of routes, means of destroying enemy facilities, capture and use of their tools, and total time elapsed… all exceeded my expectations. Also, you neutralized the greatest threat in this exercise, the gun battery in such a short time which also exceeded my expectations." So far so good, Sumika smiled boastfully at their accomplishments.

"However, since my expectations were for you to exceed my expectations, you have only reached my expectations. Furthermore, seeing as you only reached my expectations when I expected you to exceed them, all of you have failed to meet my expectations."

If discomfort could have a value applied to it, the number would be strictly immeasurable during that second of that day. The whole team knew Sergeant Jinguuji was only joking, they must know, but for such an out-of-place gag at such a critical moment no one could envision a proper reaction that would smooth out the transition of continuing their assessment.

"Aaaah… pardon me, Instructor?"

"…That was Professor Kouzuki's message to you. As for me, I want to congratulate you all for successfully passing the CCSE with one of the highest scores ever recorded. Truly a feat to marvel at, Squad 207. As your drill Sergeant, I can admit I stand as a proud teacher here."

Everyone wonderfully paraded traits of delight at hearing the final verdict of the exam. It was a rare occasion where tears of joy inconspicuously leaked down the faces of Sumika's teammates, they had every right to celebrate that glorious victory, for the next opportunity would be still far away.

 _Well, that wasn't too bad, was it Takeru-chan?_

" _If I was trying to beat my personal best speedrun record of 'Life', I'd reset after missing the frame-perfect trick of not being the Causality Conductor. But as a marathon, this run is alright even if it isn't on WR pace._ "

… _That might be the most convoluted way of saying good job I've ever heard._

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 21, 2001. CCSE over**

 **Southern island beach**

"Look at this, all this, Shirogane. Feast your eyes upon the miracle that is sexualized female figures swimming in bikinis, how could you not want to join them?" Sipping her probably criminally expensive wine as she taunted me, Yuuko-sensei laid back on her beach chair tanning herself under the sun.

"You know, sometimes a man just gotta think, just gotta reflect on his life decisions. That's what's happening right now."

"And your conclusion is?" Sensei apparently wasn't aware of how contemplating life only cause it to complicate further.

"I dunno… I see these girls playing in the sea, so happy and stuff and it's— it looks like there's nothing wrong with the world, but that's not true, we all know it. Just because I'm used to this place doesn't mean I don't miss my old one, that's all." Rarely I still dreamed of days on that peaceful planet, although it got easier to tell the difference every time I looked back.

"Say, just as a hypothesis. If you had the choice to go back to your original world, would you do it?" A layer of irony shrouded the theory sensei asked me.

"…Man, this takes me back. It's kinda like the red pill blue pill scene in The Matrix, except I had to spit out the blue pill and take the red one instead. I dealt with a bunch of hesitation when it first—"

"-Takeru! On what ground have you warranted the right to sulk after your heroic victory!?" My profound and downhearted speech was painstakingly ruined by an intruding Meiya who realized my absence.

"Hold on, I'm just talking to the Professor about—"

"-Ah~! There's a Takeru-chan not swimming in the ocean!? _~Naaaaniii!?_ Is Takeru-chan like- stoopid or something!?" Why couldn't Sumika express herself without behaving in the cringiest manner possible?

 _I'll seriously, legitimately fucking murder you, woman. And then I'll feel bad about it cuz I actually did it not as a joke._

"Takeru-san, your thoughts misalign with your decree, please fix this fallacy immediately." Kasumi was in queue to mess with me next.

"…You know what, you're right. I should just kill Sumika once and for all, and the rest of you can go with." For my design to become reality, I must first get off the sandy beach and venture into the sea.

"Shirogane… for what it's worth, I think you chose wisely." Yuuko-sensei didn't approve of my decision with her usual light-hearted sarcasm, it was a weird tone to hear from her.

"You know what, I think so too."

—

"-Huh? Is Takeru coming to play to with— wait- where's he going…?"

"Is Takeru-san going back to our boat? Did he forget his swimsuit?"

"…Hold up… that thing got a water cannon on the front…"

"…There's no way Takeru would do something like that, right? That boat was converted from a fireboat, its deluge gun can shoot up to a hundred metres vertical!"

"Yeah, he's probably trying to scare us or something… it could be lethal if somebody got hit by the stream."

"…Except he's doing it…"

"…You can't be serious- GO! Go, run for cover!"

[Mission failed, we'll get'em next time]

—

 **Updated on 09/28/2017**

 **Author's note**

I actually don't know how many BETA were used during the XM3 trials, and I doubt there's a solid number out there but if there is you can come and laugh at me for not researching.

Another thing about the _italics_ , when Takeru sings it isn't in that because he sings badly, but Sumika can probably sing better in English or other languages so she gets the _italic_ treatment. BTW, as you seen whoever has the PoV of a section of the story their thoughts are in _Italic_ only without "", so there's that.

Thanks for wasting time here, let me know if there's stuff you want me to know.

BETA done by chad001

Test: ㆾ5㈑5


	6. Ch6: California rolls aren't real sushi

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 21, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

 _Now… now… why in the fuck is there a cutting board on top of me?_

"Good morning, Takeru-san. It is currently the twenty-first of November, 2001, at 0730 hours UTC+9. If you feel so inclined, I'd recommend you to prepare for today's lecture on basic TSF functions and controls instead of… -nnghhnng~ …molesting my breasts…"

Labeling my actions as molesting her was the same as accusing a homeless guy of thievery for digging through trash. Furthermore, my case was also reinforced by a maybe-slightly aroused Kasumi continuously grinding her hips over my stomach in a motion which appeared sexy on paper but was actually just kinda uncomfortable.

"…Damn girl… are you the Hubble Space Telescope…?"

"Depending on my answer, are you thinking of—"

"-Because you're the flattest thing ever created by mankind." Confirming the total annihilation of one Yashiro Kasumi.

"…I believe the object you're referring to is the Hubble Telescope's mirror, which only has a height differentiate value of 5.6E." Not clear, not clear.

"Close enough… and it's not all bad, the more I rub it the bigger they'll get. That's what you want, right?" She took some time to think, but not too long.

"I hope for the development of my body to bring you some semblance of physical pleasure whenever you -hnngnn~ … decide to accept my virginity."

… _Moshi moshi keisatsu desu._ Some roleplaying to spice up the job.

"Don't worry Takeru-san, the laws of your old world won't bind us anymore. I can satisfy you to your heart's desire."

"Hi _,_ yes, I'd like to file a restraining order."

"Case overruled, insufficient evidence." Not even before I could register my next sentence, Kasumi's uniform had already magically slipped off and only her pink bra was hanging loosely over her shoulders as she had untied the pins from behind.

"You seriously wanna do this? Not gonna save it for a special occasion or something?"

"My mind is made up, daddy. Today you shall not get away." So determinately, Kasumi went down to work.

When entering any route for any of the heroines in almost any VN, there were still choices left that affect which end would be there by the finale of the particular route. This was not one of those choices, however its importance could not be disregarded.

[Hold ㆾ5 to be dominated.]

[Hold ㆾ5 to dominate.]

 **Hallway**

"…There is only one thing you can do. Learn the controls as soon as possible and destroy our enemies, the BETA!" By the time we were done playing hooky Marimo-chan had almost finished the morning lesson for the class, her authoritative voice easily spilled out from the confines of the classroom into the hallway where we hid.

 _Stop, stupid, whacha gonna do, walk in and high-five the lads for having your cherry popped?_ I grabbed Kasumi at the last second before she set course for a suicide run.

" _Understood, we'll standby until the situation changes, is that advisable?_ "

 _Yeah, let's just hang out for a bit._

"-Hum… you two are looking awfully suspicious for two awfully suspicious individuals, what's so wrong about going back to class?" Or we wouldn't hang out at all, that was fine too.

"Sensei, sup."

"Professor Kouzuki, good morning." One of the most regular greetings I did in a while, that in itself was an exceptionally rare phenomenon.

"Shirogane and Yashiro, my plan is to present the XM3 you two made to your class. If you'd like an excuse to cover for whatever reason you two are absent, then come with." Remarkably generous for sensei to offer a get-out-of-jail-free card on a whim, supposedly she was simply in a jolly mood that day.

There was no need to strategize with Kasumi prior to accepting Yuuko-sensei's gift. We followed behind her and marched proudly into the classroom with our heads held high, each of our teammates together with the instructor displayed assorted degrees of surprise at our arrival but said nothing in retaliation to our interruption.

"Good morning everyone. Marimo, sorry these two didn't attend your class, I needed them for something."

"Oh, I see, it is no problem, professor." Marimo-chan, albeit a bit baffled, easily accepted Yuuko-sensei's bullshit.

" _Takeru-chan, Takeru-chan! What were you two doing together?_ " The obnoxious and irrelevant android poked her head where it didn't belong.

 _Nah, don't worry, we were just-_

"— _Drowning in the earthy pleasure of one another's body heat, Sumika-san. It was only physical._ "

 _You… I wouldn't believe it but you're actually proud, huh, Kasumi?_ As the saying went: lady in the street, uncontrollable nymphomaniac in the sheet.

" _How nice, how nice, Kasumi-chan. Did it feel good being Takeru-chan's first?_ "

" _Yes, like always it's a satisfying sensation._ " This slut had no idea.

" _Hehe, as long as you're happy, I'm alright with sharing._ " That bitch too couldn't be counted as a reliable friend.

"-Shirogane, need you to stop daydreaming and look over here. You see this here, this's something else." Along the way of riding the rails on my mindless auto-pilot mode, Yuuko-sensei was midway through her demonstration of the XM3.

The varied expressions of my classmates were no less astonished than when they saw the first video clip of a regular TSF maneuvering around an obstacle course, but seeing even a trailer of a fighter utilizing the advanced OS left them absolutely breathless.

"…Amazing, is it even possible for TSFs to move like that?"

"Weren't you listening at all, Sakaki? The new OS, XM3 is what makes this kind of movement possible, I had a nice benefactor who kindly supplied me with this toy. It's still in developmental phase, but I'm willing to let you kids try it out, give it a spin and gather data. More details will be given during your actual training. Look forward to it, alright?"

"-Yes, ma'am!" Joyfully, the group replied, passionately welcoming their exclusive concession.

"You heard her, cadets. Looks like your fortune has yet to end. Make sure you train extra hard as to not let down the hope the Professor has placed on you!" Marimo-chan piggybacked off sensei's morale boost.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Continuing on, it has been decided to promote Cadet Shirogane Takeru to the position of Squad leader of Training Squadron 207. I hope you all understand my reason for that, as obvious as it should be." Shirogane Takeru, the official leader of the 207th summer camp. No bonfire songs were to be sung offkey by even one hertz.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"That is all. Each of you will finish lunch by 1300 hours and then assemble in the dressing room. Dismissed." The two senior citizens left our classroom hand in hand.

"Congratulations, Takeru. You are now officially our squad leader." Was it a scornful tribute of irony or a genuine approval from Chizuru? It wouldn't really matter anyway.

"Don't feel bad, class rep. I just put in more hours and effort into being a piece of shit who orders people around, no biggie."

"I have held the belief for the longest time with regards to acknowledging Takeru's superior leadership abilities. With all due respect to you as the most capable person until his arrival, Sakaki."

"Yaay… squad leader Takeru."

"Congratulations, Takeru-san!"

"Keep leading us from now on okay?"

"PROOOMOOOTEEEEEED! Takeru-chan, Private First-Class VII!"

"Good job, Takeru-san."

A glorious round of applause, minus the clapping part.

"Now then, shall we go to the PX?"

"Ah… yes! Let's go, Chizuru-san." Class rep and Mikoto fired off the first shots, under the assumption that Chizuru proposed this plan as a petty revenge against me, then Mikoto was just a plain dum-dum.

"What's your hurry for, woman?"

"We need to finish before one PM. The aptitude test is after this, let's hurry up and get going."

"Time to stuff your— our stomach, let's go, Takeru-chan."

"…Food, foody Food." Ayamine had always been like this.

"You are all being quite malicious." And Meiya wasn't lavishing sympathy.

While on the surface the notion was for my squad to gang-up on me and bully their beloved boss, I wasn't someone that could be beaten into submission by five puny virgins and two massive tarts.

"Boy I sure am hungry, indeed hungry… indeed." Dashing between the crowd, I seized Sumika by her organic-like arm.

"Eh? What? Hello?"

"But you know who's hungrier? More hungry than me, even? ~This guy!" A dumbfounded face wasn't helping the 00 Unit from escaping whatever the opposite of starvation was.

"Takeru, do you already…?"

"He knows…! He knows, he knows!"

"You- wait, what-wait-what? Takeru-chan you doin' wha-!?" When the realization kicked in, the chopping block had already been dusted.

"And as I have warned keenly, it is futile to subject Takeru to such a mundane plot, how can any of you be impervious to this man's inclination."

"See, Meiya knows me, good girl she is. Shouldn't have tried, Sumika, you fooooool!"

"Nnnnnghhh! No way~! You girls can't…~! Heeeeelp meeeee Kasumi-chaaaaaan~!"

"I'll erect a tombstone in your name, Sumika-san."

"~NOOOOOO-OOOOO!"

"Now off with her head, do not spoil my appetite."

"…Savage."

So the reality that kicked Sumika in the face was that none of the girls was actually devoted to playing me as their sole victim, only the primary victim. As soon as I offered another sacrificial lamb in my place, the cruel hoard of wolves undoubtedly went for the kill.

 **Simulation Chamber**

A winter's first snow, a spring's first flower, an autumn's first harvest, also summer's over-exposing female bodies in bikinis, although I landed my eyes on those just a day ago. In this case, I was definitely experiencing an episode of déjà vu, seeing these girls in their transparent fortified suits for the first time.

On the elite's side, we three still had our special coloured yoga pants made to stand out. Kasumi wore her clean black custom-made suit for her future piloting of the XG-70. Sumika donned her pink and black one, just like when she was inside the Susanoo. Those two looked rather calm compared to the initial members of 207. Reasonable, since their fortified suits revealed very little compared to the others.

"We'll measure your TSF aptitude shortly…" This was probably the most boring part of the training, not to say the rest of the training wasn't just as tiresome.

"Shirogane in number one, Sakaki in number two. The rest of you are on standby." The good boss; me, was heading up first.

 **PX**

 _Oh I'm a fool… such a fool!_

" _Aha-ahaha—! A fool in a man's shoes! -Fuwahahahaha!_ " So what I forgot was robots didn't have this thing called stomach.

"Takeru, are you suuuure the shaking wasn't a big deal?" I was asked the same question ten thousand times already, this loop alone.

"God, woman. I am telling you here that I felt nothing, okay? I almost would have fallen asleep if the section was any longer." I honestly didn't remember what occurred in the simulator. My body just perfected the course by instinct without bothering my mind. Now only if writing reports could also be done like that I'd be a step closer towards God himself.

"…You're a biological oddity." What Ayamine said couldn't be any closer to the truth. Good thing I wasn't weird enough for her to actually believe it.

"How about you two, Kasumi-san and Sumika-san?" Mikoto shifted the attention to my companions.

"It was fine, the extra food was a bit rough, but I didn't have too many problems!" Sumika answered like a normal teenage girl, without a digestive system; that was an important part.

"It was okay." And Kasumi provided the shortest of answers.

"You three aren't humans…" Ayamine was just firing shots all over the place.

"In any case, none of what these three are capable of can induce anymore revelation within me."

"Still, the Instructor said that these three were all incredibly calm. It's legitimately inhuman to be able to stay like that." Playing along with the plot, just enjoying the ride as my group discussed the thing and the other thing.

"Even Ayamine-san was quite agitated if she didn't show it." Tama also found this theme to be interesting.

"…Abnormally agitated."

"So, Takeru. You reallllly weren't affected by the shaking?" Mikoto was getting annoying with her constant questioning.

"Ahh, let's just assume that our machines were broken and just drop this bloody topic, alright?" I brushed them away, not wanting to dwell on a pointless waste of energy.

 **November 22, 2001**

 **Simulation chamber**

"—Okaaaay, kids. Sync in with me, yeah? We haven't done this in a bit so don't let your rust show."

"—Copy, copy."

"—Great, cool. So three… two… one… green light. Scramble, scramble." Ordering to takeoff immediately wasn't exactly professional, but time was of the essence even during simulations.

"—Confirmed visual on heavy inbound Bogeys, count twelve." Kasumi coolly radioed in her report.

"—Bogeys? Bogey… requesting Bogey… dope? Probably not needed, probably are Bandits, right? Bandits? Emm, probably should engage those Bandits?" Genius tactician Sumika.

"—Roger, Weapons free, engage incoming Bandits. Guns, guns."

 _I miss future video games; these graphics are horseshit._

—

"Shirogane, Yashiro, Kagami. Just so you know the record of that simulation won't be kept. Per request of Professor Kouzuki." Marimo-chan met us once we exited the roller-coaster pods.

"That's fine. Will this be enough to testify to my rank, Sergeant Jinguuji?"

"Yes, sir. 1st Lt. Shirogane." Marimo-chan saluted the higher-ranking officer in the room.

"Alright, do this thing once and get it outta your system, let's go back to the cadet-instructor ploy after this."

"Very well, Shirogane. The professor was also very clear about your treatment after she revealed your rank. I know the reason is classified so I won't ask. Please keep up your good work and continue to lead Squad 207."

"Solid, I see you later then, Marimo-chan."

"…Right." Her unhappiness with the usual nickname was suppressed by my authority as the bigger big boy.

Yuuko-sensei called me yesterday night to update me on some new developments. Essentially, she wanted me to run some missions together with the Valkyries sometime down the line. The woman took up on my offer to fly a couple favours for her, couldn't trump my own promise.

The good thing was that I no longer had to sit through all these long hours of useless Eishi training since Instructor Jinguuji was in on the secret. Yuuko also promoted Sumika and Kasumi both to 2nd Lieutenant, just because it made things easier.

Nothing had yet to come up that needed my help, so for now, I could just skip any class I fancied. Marimo-chan wasn't thrilled with me deserting at random, so we showed her our piloting skills to convince her personally that my wings came with the whole package.

"Takeru-chan, when will the others start their training?"

"In about half an hour, why did I plan this thing in the morning… am I retarded? Waking up early is for normies, I don't deserve this."

"Takeru-san, I wake up earlier than you every day."

"And you're very much retarded." I protested about common daily problems to the two of them as we waited for the squad to gather.

—

"Owie, owchie ow-ow ouches. I-I hate, I hate moving." I climbed out of the pod to meet everyone's awe-filled gazes.

"Shirogane, nicely done, beating the highest score. That's the second time someone scored over one hundred percent on this course." Marimo-chan told me I built a Lego set for 3-8 years in eight months, when to start my own construction company?

" _Domo, domo._ "

"Anyway, Squadron. Professor Kouzuki wants me to inform all of you that from now until your graduation, training Squadron 207 will have top priority access to all of the simulators." As a matter of fact, it would be bad if the squad didn't have top priority, since this was the only squad training for TSF piloting right now.

"Eh?!"

"Also, your personal training units arrive with the XM3 operating system installed." To be fair, it couldn't be here any earlier.

"EH!? Tomorrow? Already?" Class rep felt the need to be constantly shocked by every piece of news she heard.

"The Professor said TSFs are like cars. It takes practice to get the hang of it. That is all. Morning training is over. We'll have more simulation training this afternoon. Everyone assemble here in your fortified suits at 1500 hours. Until then, review the manual." With nothing left to do, Marimo-chan dismissed us.

"Hmm? Err…? Hello?"

The collective consciousness of the scrubs voted to hassle together in a circle and share a private conversation, I kinda awkwardly stood off to the side trying to sneak a peek in on what they were discussing so obsessively about.

"Takeru-chan, their hivemind is working!"

"…I see that."

A little while later, the ball of flesh dispersed into its individual persons.

"Takeru, Yashiro and Kagami. We've decided on the one question you owe us, are you okay with us asking it right now?" Class rep, literally representing her class again, was speaking to address the bet we established weeks ago.

"Yeah, sure, hit me- don't actually hit me but hit me with what you wanna ask."

"Have any of you ever enlisted in any militarist forces that involved TSFs?"

 _Wow, wow such creativity, just marvel at this, Sumika. Fucking Albert Einstein, really thinking outside the box._ These kids had bright futures as great thinkers, no doubt.

" _Why don't you just tell them the truth, Takeru-chan? All of it._ "Interesting suggestion.

… _Why don't I_.

"Okay, your answer is yes. Specifically, not only one military, at least for me I've run around with almost everyone military force in the world. IJA, IRG, Americans, Russians, I'm a social guy, you know? And yeah, it took some time, like a couple hundred of years, but another secret is that I'm actually a time traveller who returns to October 22 2001 every time I die." Truth=exposed.

"Oh, and also, Kasumi is actually a Russian clone and Sumika's a robot, but that's insignificant, I'm the coolest dude here okay."

And then silence, a whole lotta of that.

"…What a guy, I'm gonna go eat now." Ayamine broke the ice in an amusingly irresponsible way.

"Yeah… it was stupid of me to ask; how did I not foresee this?"

"Ah- Chizuru-san, Kei-san, wait for us~!"

"Takeru, do try to keep your absurd sarcasm in moderation."

 _Well, they are in a need for speed. This reaction is even weaker than when I told them I was a super-soldier or something!_ And there was that guy who said the truth was stranger than fiction.

" _Skirt-skirt!_ We should get outta here too, Takeru-chan."

Overall, an uninteresting morning. Didn't think they'd act so skeptical about my past, but they did.

 **PX**

"You ever seen Forrest Gump? What's the guy's name that starred in it?"

"Tom Hanks. As a trivia fact, the version of that movie in this world has replaced the Vietnam War with the BETA landing in Canada."

"Does that work? I mean they're in TSFs, right? Like the Lieutenant Dan scene… no, I guess it can work. I never actually seen that movie here, the original one was great though."

"Yes, we've talked about this before. This movie lightened my dislike for black people, but added to my dislike for women." Was racism better or worse than misogyny? Kasumi sure knew how to prejudice.

"Oh? Cadet… Shirogane! Funny running into you here at this time. And… you are XO Kouzuki's lackey, right? The one that tags alongside her wherever she goes." There, appearing out of absolutely thin air, Hayase Mitsuki had discovered me during my skipping hours with Kasumi on her skipping hours.

"First Lieutenant Hayase, I'm Yashiro Kasumi, assistant to Professor Kouzuki." Kasumi acknowledged Hayase with a cute nod.

"I see, if you're with XO then I guess you're one of us. So, you two… just hanging out here right now? Nothing going on?"

"Yeah, yeah pretty much. You?"

"Not much, not much. Last sortie was a couple weeks ago, kinda bored these days." A normal conversation was possible with Hayase, I never knew.

"What was your last deployment for, 1st Lt. Hayase?" That was Kasumi's worst impression of the CIA, or the best; a coin toss, really.

"I'm pretty sure it was not something I can talk about now, good try though."

Could a retort be lackluster if it wasn't even made?

"So anyway, what's up with you, Shirogane? Don't you have your trainee class or something? What squad are you with, even?"

"207B. I'm under special circumstances that let me miss a couple of classes." It was really all of the classes, but Hayase wouldn't be concerned by such details.

"Ah! Now I get it, so you kids are gonna be joining us after you graduate, right? This makes you my junior, huh? C'mon call me _senpai_ , Shirogane-kun!" That woman had brain problems on a different magnitude than what I dealt with regularly.

"Ahahaha- no. Stop being weird, 1st Lt. Hayase. Shouldn't you have some more of that dignity stuff with you? What would your colleagues in the Valkyries say if they see you acting this retarded?" I had gotten so used to insulting Hayase at every turn it didn't even register with me how it might sound disrespectful for a cadet to call her names.

"Hoho! Got quite a pair on you, huh! Man, I can't wait for you kids to graduate and join the big leagues. I'm gonna put that ass to good work, you hear!"

"-Only if you can work your own ass to be half as fit, Hayase. Who're you picking a fight with this time?" The harsh voice of Isumi lectured the carefree First Lieutenant, she made her entrance promptly and locked her arm around Hayase's shoulder.

"C-Captain!? Strange for you to be here at this time, eh? I'm just having a laugh with these cadets over here, nothing serious, I promise, alright?" The distraction worked well enough for Isumi to lose interest in the blue-haired girl and focus on us instead.

"Oh yeah? Humph… I never saw your face around here before, cadet. And you're the girl that follows the XO wherever she goes… an intriguing pair, you two. What Squadron?"

"They're Squad 207B, The ones after Akane's team." Hayase answered correctly in my place.

"I see… well, the Valkyries could always use good pilots. I look forward to your graduation. I'll learn your name when that time comes, cadet. Stick around until then."

 _Hot damn that was hella cool, is Isumi always this smooth?_ It was certainly a memorable first impression the Captain left on me, not like I couldn't outdo her though.

"As for you, Hayase. We got business to tend to, let's go."

"Hayo! I see you later, the-guy-whose-name-Captain-doesn't-wanna-know, and XO's lackey too. Bye kids!" So Hayase happily left with her boss, what remained was a nonchalant Kasumi and an egocentric me.

"How dare they treat me without the respect I deserve, I'm so gonna make them suck me off later."

"Physically?"

"That too, but metaphorically first, these things have stages."

 **November 23, 2001**

 **Yokohama TSF hangar**

 _Something something the new Fubukis! Something something Salute Marimo-chan! Something something Yuuko-sensei's vinyl fetish! Something something don't be late for the assembly! Wooohooo~ I am so entertained!_

"Ah, that purple thingy! Look Kasumi-chan it's one of them Takemysushi! But not my sushi, okay! Especially not my Tamago roll, those are my favourite!"

"My favourite is the tuna nigiri, it tastes much better than canned tuna."

"That's because it's fresh, dummy. Canned tuna has a lifespan of like- five hundred shelf-years!"

From time to time I could do nothing but be awed by the glory of Sumika's infectious autism, it was pure talent how she came up with those random and stupid topics.

"Takeru… do you know of the reason for that machine's presence?" Meiya snuck up behind me and whispered timidly as Sumika and Kasumi continued their sushi debate.

"Ye, boi. You aren't exactly blending in, you know?"

"I do understand…"

"Not like I care a bit though, why don't we go take a look at your imperial privilege?"

"Takeru, I ask you to refrain from addressing it as such."

"You gotta chill out, my dude."

—

"Uwaaa… a Takemikazuchi!" The magnificent marvel that was the Type-00 implored for Tamase's gentle touch on its lustrous metal.

"Halt Cat woman! You shall not touch it!" I yanked Miki by her collar and strangled the poor soul on the spot, preventing her from dirtying Meiya's beautiful ride with her filthy paws.

"Owwwww!"

"Actually, none of you can touch it. I'll have to make sure everyone else knows this, see this sign? What does it say?" I whipped out a piece of paper and stuck it before all their faces.

"Haha, Takeru-chan! This sign can't stop me because I can't read!" What a reversal.

"Oh shit got me, guess you can touch it all you want."

"Ahhh, tasty tasty come to me!" A lot of rubbing took place in a very short period of time.

As iconic as they came, this Takemikazuchi in particular had been the staple of my trials throughout the years as the time-travelling, world-saving dude. It was a milestone for sure, I still remembered the first time I set foot in its cockpit and borrowed the sharpest sword of Japan's industrial achievement to snatch victory for many factions of the Shogunate, replicating Meiya's heroic deeds all those years ago.

In other words, the Type-00 the meta, its seat reserved for sweatys only.

"You insolent girl!"

"Owwwwiiieeeeee~!" Almost comically, Tsukuyomi came up and bitch slapped Sumika right across her extremely slapable cheeks. She proceeded to flap hilariously in the air, breaking all laws of physics and ended up just laying dead on the asphalt floor.

"…I need healing."

Sumika was probably one of the most unique people to ever live in the history of humanity, one of her traits being her totally autistic characteristic to be able to drain all of the gravity and tension out of a situation at her whim. Somehow, she could make nothing feel real when she wasn't taking it seriously, everything became a badly written plot-twist in a long-running kid's cartoon whenever she desired.

 _C'mon dumbass, get up and let the angry, scary lady keep being angry and scary to you._ That also happened to line up precisely with Tsukuyomi's timetable.

"How dare you put your filthy hands on this unit?!"

"The likes of you aren't worthy of touching this!"

"This exists for Meiya-sama and no one else!"

"Consider it a blessing that you will not suffer anything worse!" That was a wrap from Tsukuyomi and her three idiots.

"Tsukuyomi… First Lieutenant. What on earth are you doing!?" Meiya took a stance to shield Sumika from further abuse, apparently her masterful flopping act deceived the eyes of most present.

"Meiya-sama! There is no need to address me as your superior!"

"She's right! We of the Imperial Royal Guards may have high ranks, but we're mere servants before the House of the Shogun!" Intentional or not, Tsukuyomi and her fleet of idiots had distracted Meiya and the rest of us from her assault on Sumika.

"…Although this is belated, congratulations on passing the Comprehensive Combat Skill Evaluation."

"Congratulations!"

"…You do not seem too enthused."

Keeping their distance, Tsukuyomi went on about how she wasn't fond of Meiya's status as a political hostage, but the blue-haired girl made it doubly clear that it wasn't a subject for Tsukuyomi to be disturbed over.

"My apologies… I have gone too far…" On the other hand, Tsukuyomi's dissatisfaction was far from arbitrary. Meiya as she was now, had been tangled by strings of devious schemes and inscrutable plots, strings that she couldn't sever with the unforged blade in her heart.

"I apologize for forcing such inconveniences upon you. You must all find this place quite constraining." Meiya spoke up after some silence had passed.

"You are most kind… but there is no need for you to concern yourself with us, Meiya-sama."

Tsukuyomi's loyalty to Meiya was another landmark of unwavering devotion, even between all the different worlds. I knew for a fact that loyalty reached beyond just her duty as a retainer to the royal houses, a special connection sewed together the brave and noble samurai with her steadfast servant.

"More importantly, Meiya-sama. We have prepared a Takemikazuchi for you. Please, do accept this gift…"

"I intend to remain true to my humble position. Even a Fubuki is too great an honour for a mere cadet."

"Please stop this. Meiya-sama, you need not—"

"Cease you prattling…! Remove it at once. Others are sure to wonder what it is doing here."

"This Takemikazuchi was commissioned for you alone, Meiya-sama. We have been ordered to deliver it to you… surely you understand who arranged for this, and the depths of her concern… I beg of you, do not coldly dismiss her good will." Probably the only time in my life I saw someone refusing to receive a TSF upgrade, Meiya sure had the oddest impressions of her own status.

"…Do as you wish." Tsukuyomi's constant persuasion had shown results when Meiya hesitantly accepted the gift from her sister.

"We thank you for your understanding… I shall take my leave then."

Tsukuyomi led her three idiots in tow, passing us as she shot me that scornful glare of enmity— correction, the ones who got stared down wasn't just me, Sumika also experienced an eyeful of hostility. As for Meiya, she purposefully tilted her head to the side, hiding her fading scar that resided over her left eye.

 _Can I just say, Mana-Mana really is best waifu? Is it even up for debate?_

" _That I'll agree with, Takeru-chan. If I had to kill all of your wives I probably kill her last._ " I was reassured once more that Sumika was not mentally unstable.

"My apologies for that unseemly spectacle." Meiya shouldn't be the one to apologize, but her personality demanded such grievance.

"Ah, Mitsurugi-san, wait for us!" Following Meiya, Tama and the rest chased after her.

"Alright, you chicks get going. I'll be there in a bit." I hastily sent off the unimportant characters to do their own thing, only Sumika and Kasumi were left alongside me under the purple machine.

"In fifty-seven seconds Tsukuyomi will approach to speak with you, Takeru-san. Your instructions please."

"Ahh… I don't really have anything to offer… just go do the thing you wanna in the first place?"

—

"…What are you doing?" Just on time too, Tsukuyomi wasn't even a second behind.

"Tsukuyomi."

"I do not recall granting you permission to address me by name, Shirogane Takeru." After so many meetings, the red-suit in front of me seemed a little bit less terrifying than the first time.

"Okay, so you want a nickname or something? It's a kinda weird coming up with your own nickname though, like I think it's something that comes naturally, you feel?"

"You dare burble on before a superior with that impudent attitude?"

"I don't remember being told to respect a foreign officer. If you want, sure… to you, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi." My hasty salute earned no friendship tokens with the disdain lady.

"I shall ask again, and you will answer appropriately. What are you doing here, Shirogane Takeru?" She didn't follow up on that salute thing I did, somewhat disappointed.

"Just looking at this Takemikazuchi, it's quite… quite big."

"Who are you, really, speak only the truth." Was our conversation even connecting? I was trying my darndest to be friends with her too.

"Is Shirogane Takeru a bad name? There're guys in history with those names, right?"

"…You choose to play dumb?" Ebisu, that short one, came to an unlikely conclusion.

"And by playing dumb, you mean what?"

"…Why is a dead person training here?" Dun~ dun~ dunnnnnnn~!

"Oh wait-what? I'm dead? Is this one of those things where I see my own death in my dream? Am I… am I dreaming? Yo, this's the first time I have a lucid dream, it's kinda dope…"

"Do not attempt to deceive us! Why did you alter the UN Army database and infiltrate this facility? Couldn't do the same to the government's databases, could you!" A funny thing I noticed here. Almost no matter what I said, the four of them will never just accept it and stop spamming me with mean words. They really were persistent about finding the truth.

"The Royal Guard has no respect these days. Bombarding and accusing me of things that I have no clue about."

"You—! I will ask once more… why is a dead man walking?" Their determination to extract information out of me was resilient, points were given for that consistency.

"Ahaha, I honestly don't know what you mean."

"Why are you trying to get close to Meiya-sama?" The Royal Guards just kept on interrogating me without end.

"To be completely honest, I'll tap that ass if I have the chance, not even jokingly joking." That statement clearly got the four more aggravated.

"You arrogant fool! This will be your last chance to answer me. Depending on your answer, you may have to die once again on this very spot!" Some polished negotiation skills at play here, my choices were to either answer and die or not answer and die. Tsukuyomi sure knew how to be convincing.

"Alright, alright you're right. Let's cut the shit. Listen closely, Tsukuyomi. I ain't got the responsibility to tell you anything, frankly. The government's data lists me as deceased, that's too fucking bad for you, yeah? I didn't enlist with the IJA now, did I? I'm a UN soldier and under the jurisdiction of the Yokohama Base command, you got problems, suggestions, whatever, send a letter upstairs. Don't fucking bother me with this disabled shit, please. Please."

Was that too much, maybe. Maybe just a teeny-tiny bit too aggressive.

"Why you…!" Scary Tsukuyomi sure was scary, and scary.

That moment, I could feel her blood boiling from the enormous frustration, threatening to violently strike me down with a swift kick or a hard punch. Even a trained Eishi like Tsukuyomi could only restraint herself so much before that pent-up wrath must be released, perhaps pushing her buttons too fast in rapid succession wasn't the brightest idea I had all day.

"What is the meaning of this!"

The cavalry arrived just in time, and so did Sumika, for some reason.

"Tsukuyomi! Kamiyo, Tomoe, Ebisu! What do you think you are doing?!"

"Meiya-sama! I wasn't—!"

"Do you not know the consequences of assaulting a UN soldier? The worst-case scenario, this could completely destroy the relationship between the Imperial and the UN!"

"Meiya-sama… there were no means of physical contact, I assure you!"

"Enough, pray that nothing merits my intervention takes place ever again." Quick to forgive, Meiya only wished to calm the situation before it could escalate.

"Okay, look, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. I wanna apologize as well, I do like bullying people, it's kinda a bad habit, I'll admit. Sorry about that, I went a bit far, yeah? Honestly, I don't have any deep plots or anything hidden like that. I mean she's my teammate too, I won't let any harm come to her. And plus, Meiya's been very kind to me, I'm not some bad dude, seriously."

I could be a bit of an asshole, had a tendency to troll and play people and stuff. However, I was not a man without dignity, and it was that dignity which devoted me to remain in this world, to protect those that had protected me.

"Takeru…" Meiya gazed heartfully at me warmly, the distance between us might have shortened by some more microscopic amount.

"Meiya-sama, one last question, if you please."

"I shall allow it."

"Meiya-sama… do you trust this man?" Unexpectedly, Tsukuyomi's words didn't feel so intimidating.

"I trust Takeru with all my heart. I know he is a man that will never betray me." And just as surprisingly came her answer, that young girl had already saved a place for me so close to her.

"Then I will humbly take my leave. Kamiyo, Tomoe, Ebisu." Tsukuyomi with the three idiots bowed again and started to make way to the exit.

"Tsukuyomi. Not a day goes by that I am not thankful for your concern."

"Your words are most kind… and more than I deserve… I am forever grateful to be given the honour of serving you." Leaving that as her parting line, Tsukuyomi took the three idiots and left, for real.

"…That must have been unpleasant for you… forgive me." Once the shadows of the four were no longer in view, Meiya amended for her servant's actions yet again.

"Not as much as it was for her. You sure she's gonna be fine, right? Not gonna wanna stab me in my bed?"

" _You use that expression too much, Takeru-chan! I'm seeing rust!_ "

 _You shut your whore mouth, woman. I threaten to rape you in your sleep but you'll just enjoy it anyway, stop ruining our moment!_

"Takeru, if I may."

"Yea, man."

"You were accosted by the Imperial Royal Guards, and yet instead of flinching, you turned the tide towards discomforting them… you truly are peculiar."

"I'll confess, never did like anyone acting so high and mighty. I'm supposed to be the one who's everyone's boss." Fuck the police coming straight from the underground. Except I was the police, so that took on a whole new meaning.

"Well, it cannot be helped if I am to consider your true origin… simply… I have never had anyone act so candid in my presence. And yet I have already come to accept your behaviour as the norm."

"Is being beaten over your head by a bat not acting candid?"

"That too. The three of you have displayed some rather… unorthodox signs of friendship, and I do consider Kagami and Yashiro to be closely similar to you."

"But I mean, doesn't the rest of the squad act pretty casual around you too? Maybe not so much as me, but still." If they weren't, they sure should.

"During squad activities, perhaps… but when we were off duty, there was always a certain awkwardness."

"Is that so, I didn't notice such a thing." I couldn't notice what wasn't there.

"Things changed significantly after your arrival… ever since then, I feel as though everyone has become much less reserved."

"Guess we're some weirdos then, I dunno. I never really think about how people might want some privacy, but so far it's been working out just fine. If it does get too much though be sure to let me know, yeah?"

"I do intend to speak my thoughts also, however so far complaints have been deemed unnecessary."

"Okay, so what we ended up with is I'll keeping doing my thing to help you do yours? Is that about right? Any more questions or anything?"

"None so far."

"In that case, I got this thing I wanna ask you." Time to redirect our little talk to a bigger talk.

"What is it, Takeru?"

"The Takemikazuchi, why won't you pilot it?"

"I shall not because I stand as merely a cadet. I did not earn the right to own such an advanced TSF. It will surely be unfair to the others." The same excuse that I was all too familiar with.

"See, like that's not what I'd expect you'd say."

"And what response had you imagined?"

"Riddle me this, what was your goal for fighting? What you told me when we were alone that night." The hypocrisy of her pretext, I was determined to help her resolve it.

"It's to protect this country, to protect the citizens who cannot protect themselves."

"Then you should see my point, Meiya. Are you going to fight against the BETA with your bare hands? You'd want a weapon. And what weapon do you have currently? That sword, the sword that was given to you because of your connection to the Shogunate."

"Takeru… are you suggesting for me to pilot this TSF?"

"At the end of the day, it's your choice what you fly with. But that's the thing, you've a choice where so many others don't. The Type-00, it's super powerful, definitely more so than the Fubuki and even above the Shiranui. Eventually when we do fight, I feel its strength could be something you desire."

"So do no other men wish for that same strength? Would my undeserved advantage not only draw upon me glances of envy?" A fair point was constructed, fair but not concrete.

"Until you save their ass because you had the capability to do so. War isn't a beauty contest, nobody's competing to see who have the biggest dic— you know- gun. And the more BETAs you can kill the more lives you'll be potentially saving, isn't that what's most important?"

"I… see. I must admit I failed to consider this subject from such a point of view… indeed, allow me to ponder regarding this decision I shall make."

By that time, as Meiya stared on at the sheer might of her Takemikazuchi, a Yashiro Kasumi happened to intervene with our discussion.

"Takeru-san, the Professor wants to meet you."

"About what?"

"The HSST."

"So you told her, huh?"

"As according to your instruction."

"Right, okay… Meiya, I got this thing that needs to be gotten."

"And it must, I shall remain here for the time being. Please go ahead, Takeru."

"We're outski."

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

The Type-00 Takemikazuchi painted in purple, representing the Imperial Shogun, representing Meiya's sister, her own blood. So did that machine belong to her? Was it a curse or a blessing that she was the one chosen to be hidden? Did the few seconds which tore apart the day and night really merited such high esteem as to force her to forever live as someone else's shadow?

Dwelling in questions she couldn't know the truth of, Meiya barely noticed the presence of Kagami Sumika walking up beside her.

"Today's weather is pretty alright, heh?"

"I did not venture outside today, however I do believe it to be cloudy." A few minutes passed without a word from either party.

"This ice-breaker worked so much better in the movies, how am I suppose to continue after this!?"

"Kagami, you were the one who directed me to return here in the first place. Do you have any opinions regarding what you have heard?" Meiya for once opted for the straightforward approach.

"Well, in that case; have you decided if you're gonna fly the Type-00 or not?"

"I am deliberating… even as we speak right now."

"Well, if you don't wanna fly it can I have it?"

"…What?" The absolutely ridiculous proposal had left Meiya awestricken, she was partially unsure whether to be captivated by Kagami's boldness or to be affronted by her ludicrousness.

"You thought it wasn't fair for you to fly it since you're a cadet. Well, the truth is I'm not one, I'm a Second Lieutenant. So there shouldn't be any problems with me taking it, right?" The grand reveals came one after another.

"…Is your situation similar to Takeru? Is Yashiro also secretly a full-fledged pilot?"

"Yep and yep. There you go, now can I have the Takemikazuchi?" Meiya wasn't completely caught unready for her announcement, a certain part of her mind had already doubted the legitimacy of Kagami's rank.

"Kagami, why are you telling me this? Do you simply desire a more powerful TSF? Tell me earnestly, I wish to know, I wish to know who you really are." Shockingly overwhelmed by the inexplicable memories once more. Meiya couldn't make heads or tails of the versions she saw that contained flashes of a different time, a different world.

"You remember that joke Takeru-chan told when he was talking about his past? It was funny, right? Hahaha so hilarious? Well, it's not a joke. It's true, all of it. We've done this too many times and still haven't found an exit, and since Takeru-chan finally asked us for help I'll do what I can to get us out of here."

Her questions only stacked up higher and higher, but Meiya was too afraid that asking a single one could perhaps collapse the pile.

"Kagami… it cannot possibly be…"

"Search your feelings, you know it to be true. You seen them too, haven't you? The future, but they're not right in some ways. The memories, but just a bit of difference here and there. We live in separate times, Mitsurugi. I've seen so many of you, each so special, yet the same."

"I… I do not understand…"

"And you don't have to, it's better to stay ignorant in this case, trust me. All I'm asking is for you to give me that TSF or to pilot it yourself, I can't allow it to just sit there and collect dust, I can't." It was a spiteful insult to be given an ultimatum without even understanding the context of her demand, However, Meiya's instinct told her she held little to no room for argument as Kagami cornered her in a fearful confrontation.

"I… I shall fly it."

"Okay, that is acceptable. You better get good at it, our first deployment will be half a month from now, earlier than you imagine. Don't make Takeru-chan work extra for you, now you know the secret you should be a better pilot than the rest."

"I have taken your words to heart…"

"If that is so… great! I knew it wouldn't be hard to convince you, Mitsurugi-san! Well I'm gonna get going then, see you later in class or something, m'kay?! See ya, homie!"

Kagami Sumika's serious side, would it ever show itself to Meiya again? The honest part of her hoped otherwise.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

Gauging by on her shitty grin alone, Yuuko-sensei seemed just like her old high-school teaching self. The weight of creating the world's first and only quantum computer had manifested itself as wrinkles on a fine lady far too young to warrant such a hit on her beauty, fortunately that detrimental flaw no longer existed.

"I got questions, Shirogane, you got answers?"

"Maybe, probably not, try anyway." Rapid-fire family feud.

"What model is the HSST?"

"No clue, we beeped it without an identification."

"Took off from which airbase?"

"Don't know, probably American, unless we're trying to bomb ourselves."

"What explosive did they have onboard?"

"Plastic, most likely. Or Semtex, wait- those are the same thing, right?"

"Semtex is Czech's C4, yes. Did they not teach you this in class?"

"Must've skipped it, everything that blows up is C4 these days."

"Fair enough, that's all I want to ask." Survey said out of one hundred Americans zero had the proper knowledge to handle military explosives.

"Will you take care of it, sensei? Not to hype up anything but avoiding impending doom is a thing I'd like to do."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll pull some strings and get this checked out. To be totally honest, I wouldn't mind the excitement, but let's do this one steady and safely." Reputation was a hard thing to build, sensei earned a couple points with me for being so considerate.

"Okay solid, do you still need me or you want me outta here?"

"No, do stay. I've just the thing you wanna see, it's a proper mission for you and your… little friends." My attention was given sporadically in most cases, but there were ways to increase those odds.

"Ear one and ear two, I'm listening, go ahead."

"Operation Barricade Light, the mission was proposed to scout and block the Sadogashima Stab that extended out to the Gunma Prefecture has the green light from Yokohama Command. On November 30, Task Force A-01 plus you three are gonna head down there and recon the condition of the BETA tunnels. Securing a safe passage for the demolition team that will enter after you and seal that Stab."

"Doesn't sound that dangerous or anything, did you assume I'm bored or something?" I was no stranger to undertaking such renowned endeavours, however earning distinction didn't equal to entertainment.

"It's your field assessment, and Yashiro, and Kagami."

"If you say so, sensei. Keep going."

"A-01 will be onsite at 1300 hours. Piloting Type-94 Shiranuis, you'll have five hours maximum to explore the inner workings of a Hive Stab. Just get out before six O'clock and let the team captain do the reporting, that's it, really. Questions?" The objectives were about as simple as the purpose of team deathmatch.

"No, can't think of anything."

"Good, a detailed overview will be given at a later time, equipment and stuff, nothing that interests you."

"Then I'll just fuck off, yeah?"

"You do that."

Easy game easy life? For the time being there hadn't been a difficulty spike.

—

 **Updated on 24/11/2017**

 **Author's note**

Hope you guys like reliable upload schedules because you're definitely not getting that.

BETA done by chad001


	7. Finding new friends in old friends

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 25, 2001**

 **Briefing room**

It was rare for me to wake up without Kasumi shaking my body or Sumika trying to sneak in my bed. Today was the day we meet with the Valkyries for the first time, got to represent team Shirogane. I entered the briefing room together with Kasumi and Sumika by my side.

"Oh, here they are, Shirogane and his lackeys. No offense, Yashiro, Kagami." Yuuko-sensei seemed to be under the impression that saying no offense meant no offense.

"Ahh…! You! Cadet Shirogane! What are you doing here?" Hayase was the first to react to my presence. She gave me a dumb look, not even bothering to close her mouth.

"It's nice to meet you as well, 1st Lt. Hayase. If you would calm down and remember your manners, we can continue the introduction."

"Shirogane, you have even less concern for formality then me, hum." Sensei picked up the fact that I didn't pay any mind with regards to my superiors.

"Takeru-chan! You know you shouldn't be disrespectful!" Sumika was apparently trying to replace my mother, not the first time too.

"Cadet Shirogane… that wouldn't be right, would it? Professor, please introduce them to the team." Capt. Isumi was eager to know me likewise. They rest of the Valkyries were all studying our features and looks.

"Alright. This man in front of you is 1st Lt. Shirogane Takeru. To his right is 2nd Lt. Kagami Sumika, and finally to the left is 2nd Lt. Yashiro Kasumi. These three are my special operatives that I recently recruited."

"They are directly related to Alternative IV and all have a cover as cadets of the 207 training squad, so don't go blowing it when you meet them on base." Sensei gave out a simple overview of our roles. The recruited part was false, but there was no use voicing my opinion.

"So yeah, I'm Shirogane Takeru. It's a pleasure to meet the Valkyries of A-01." I expressed a charming salute and followed up with a charismatic smile. Being centuries old had taught me precisely how to make myself the most attractive.

"I'm Kagami Sumika and I look forward to meeting you all!" Sumika displayed an innocent beam. She really looked like a child that has yet to see the terror of this world.

"Yashiro Kasumi. Please to meet you." Kasumi didn't even bother to move her body anymore than a salute. It was ill-fated that whatever happened to her had drained her expressions by this much. One day, I will make her laugh happily with the rest of us.

"I am Captain Isumi Michiru. The commander of A-01's 9th Squadron. If you are a normal new member, I would tell you that you shouldn't except an easy mission being with this team. Although I think you already know the basics." I saluted the Captain and she returned in fashion.

"I look forward to working with you, Capt. Isumi."

"Let me introduce you to the rest of the unit." Isumi walked me over to where the others were standing, starting with 1st Lt. Suzumiya.

"On the right, Command Post Officer First Lieutenant Suzumiya Haruka. She handles battlefield control from a command vehicle." I proceeded to salute Suzumiya after Captain stopped for me to do so.

"Pleased to meet you."

"You too, First Lieutenant."

"Suzumiya may look calm and nice, but she is secretly much more scarier than she looks. Make sure you don't anger her." Suzumiya wasn't merry with the Captain spilling her unknown personality.

"—C-Captain! Don't tell him things like that!"

"See?" Isumi asked for my assessment.

"Captain, I have known other females who happen to be much more scary. But I will keep in mind not to upset 1st Lt. Suzumiya." I simplified my reply to a vague sentence.

"A man with experience, Shirogane? Here, next is First Lieutenant Hayase Mitsuki, she is the commander of Platoon B. I believe the two of you had met before now." Hayase was expressing a mix of delight and animus. She already had her eyes set on me as the new goal to beat down.

"Hehe, Shirogane. So you were so calm when we talked last time because you're secretly a First Lieutenant as well? I really look forward to fighting with you." Hayase may had said with me, but we all knew she meant against me.

"Same here, 1st Lt. Hayase. My goal is to one day reach where you are." And of course, I implied beating her in combat.

"Still so brave, Shirogane. I will take you on any day of the week." She flashed a dangerous smile after our greeting.

"A good relationship you two have here, come on Shirogane." Captain pulled me away from my staring contest with Hayase and brought me before 1st Lt. Munakata.

"Next, First Lieutenant Munakata Misae, commander of Platoon C."

"Pleased to meet you." I acknowledged her normally this time.

"Same to you, Shirogane. So you are the fearless cadet Hayase ran into back then… I look forward to what you can do." Again, I assumed she indicated my abilities in combat.

"Of course, I'm very capable in all fields." We both shared a smirk, knowing the connotation behind those lines.

"What're you staring at, Shirogane? Munakata hates men, you are just gonna get yourself hurt." The Captain's assessment of Munakata wasn't exactly on point, and I planned on making it more inaccurate.

"…Challenge accepted." This time I grinned at Munakata with a seductive aura to it.

"Ohh? Shirogane, you are going to try for her? Hear that Munakata? A new challenger has just appeared." Everyone else chuckled and faked some appearances of disbelief.

"Shirogane… you really are one bold man, but it seems the girls behind you don't seem to want add anyone else to their ranks." Munakata whispered into my ear about Sumika's bitterness, I didn't even bother turning and observing her pointless upset.

"For you, first Lieutenant, I don't think I would mind not being shared." I disguised my context just as quietly back to the First Lieutenant. Her sight expression change was a sign to the first of my many victories.

"Stop flirting and let's move on, Shirogane. Next is Second Lieutenant Kazama Touko." Kazama simply stood there with a warm smile.

"Pleased to meet you, 2nd Lt. Kazama."

"You as well, 1st Lt. Shirogane." Being addressed by my ranks added a different feel to my name.

"Kazama is the calmest person of our group, she was here earlier than the rest of the 2nd Lieutenants." Kazama really was a peaceful person. I don't think I remember ever seeing her lose her cool.

"Moving on, Second Lieutenant Kashiwagi Haruko."

"Pleased to meet you, 2nd Lt. Kashiwagi." Haruko got here merely a month ago, a bit less of a veteran compared to her seniors.

"You too, 1st Lt. Shirogane. Please guide me when we fight together." Haruko's heart-warming beam reminded me of the times when I chose her to be my favourite, it wasn't without its reasons.

"Kashiwagi and her squad only recently joined us. Her only real combat experience was during the Niigata invasion. Help her out when you see fit, Shirogane." Captain recapped how Kashiwagi was almost as green as my own squad. As her senpai-like person, watching over her was a good idea.

"Alright next, Second Lieutenant Suzumiya Akane. She is the same term as Kashiwagi."

"Nice to meet you, 2nd Lt. Suzumiya." Akane still looked as energetic as can be, her rivalry with Class rep also extended to her personality.

"I will be in your care, 1st Lt. Shirogane."

"I think you are a friend of Class rep, right? You know Cadet Sakaki." I brought up Chizuru early so if things get complicated later on, it wouldn't be any fault of mine.

"Ah, yes. I'm friend with Chizuru when we were both cadets. So you really are the super human cadet that she told me about. I look forward to working with you!" Class rep will be getting her share of my super humanness once I return.

"And finally, Second Lieutenant Tsukiji Tae. Same term as the other two." I really couldn't remember what Tsukiji was like. It was regrettable that my chances of meeting her got decreased dramatically due to her early death. Something that I will try my best to prevent.

I only met Usami and Yukine once, the other new members of Valkyries. It was when I joined the Valkyries immediately at the beginning of a new loop. But it didn't work out any better for anyone.

My old squad got send off to different units and ended dead without me noticing. The Valkyries didn't fare any better as I wasn't able to help everyone at all times. That loop ended as a great tragedy that I wouldn't repeat again.

I will never forget them as soldiers that I must sacrifice to achieve a greater good, or maybe I was only doing it for myself.

"Emm, 1st Lt. Shirogane… it's an honor to meet you. I wonder if you are as good as the rumors says… ah, I'm sorry! First Lieutenant!" Good to know that this girl also had no fear.

"Nice to know you too, 2nd Lt. Tsukiji." Our first confrontation ended without another word, she was timid most of the times. However had a habit of speaking her mind, without checking it with her mind.

Sumika and Kasumi received their chance to debut after I met everyone. Once they were done, Yuuko-sensei went over the details and back stories of the upcoming operation which I didn't care about.

"So that is everything, you are all dismissed."

"Salute!" Yuuko-sensei only swatted off our show of respect and exited herself from the briefing room. Then we were left here, with nothing else to do for the day.

—

"Oi, Shirogane!" I heard Hayase's voice from behind me. She must really wanted something to shout so eagerly.

"Now that I know you are a First Lieutenant just like me. You don't have an excuse not to fight me anymore! After saying those things, there is no way you will back down, right?" This battle crazy woman had me locked on from the very beginning, and now she was granted a golden opportunity.

"I won't mind having a spar with you, Hayase. But we need to take good care of our body before the mission. And you getting beat up isn't a good way to do that."

I could feel the sudden drop of temperature in this room. Everyone just froze and turned to stare at me with looks of horror. Except for Munakata, she looked like a child waiting to open ones Christmas present.

"Shirogane… do you know what you just did?" Captain Isumi sounded very concern due to the words I spoke, she probably thought how bad I was about to get beaten, that wasn't going to be the outcome.

"Shirogane… if this is your attempt to appease to me, I think you should start writing your will. However, if you do survive Hayas, know that I will be very attracted." Munakata just wrote a check she couldn't cash. Still, no matter what she thought my intentions were, the fight between me and Hayase was inevitable at this time.

"SHI-RO-GA-NE! YOU! ME! TRAINING ROOM! NOW!" Hayase's ability to keep her beauty while being extremely furious should be counted as a skill of some sort, meanly the furious part.

 **Indoor training facility**

"I would like some rules for protection reasons. Whether we want it or not, the upcoming operation is going to need us at our best. So with that in mind. I would like to propose some rules for our skirmish." If I didn't play my cards right, both of us could end up in the hospital by the end of the hour.

"Trying to create an emergency exit, Shirogane? I don't mind, I would be charged for a one-sided assault if I don't let you run away." Her self-assurance was something that I really wanted to crush to the groundn needed to educate her that I was not the newbie who used to exist.

"One hit, Hayase. The first to get damaged loses. To make it fun for you, that hit can be as hard as you want. I won't complain about a few broken ribs if you don't dish out a follow-up."

"Shirogane, you want to end this quick, then? It would shorten the time you spent in recovery by a little." Hayase was so sure about her chance of triumph that she was underestimating me by that much. Well, I was doing the same, so guess we are even.

We took our positions at the opposite end of a mattress with about five meters between us, a distance which could be closed under a second.

"Hayase, are you ready?" Isumi checked to see if Hayase was prepared.

"Anytime, Captain."

"Shirogane, are you ready?" I only nodded as a reply. If there ever was a time for me to stop making jokes, this was it.

"Get ready, let the match… begin!"

The long-awaited battle between me and Hayase was over the second it begun, the interpretation of an instant was made clear to anyone watching our fight.

The moment Captain Isumi lowered her hand, Hayase made a direct charge for me. She had her right arm pulled back, committed to a single straight punch aimed at my upper chest.

First Lieutenant was fast, almost faster than any martial artists I ever had the honour of meeting. If I wasn't taking her seriously from the get go, I would have eaten that strike and be admitted to the Emergency.

By reaction alone, I somehow dodged her punch on the skin of my teeth. Having turned my body about ninety degrees to the left, I shifted my left leg backwards and moved my weight onto said limb.

For merely a moment when Hayase couldn't stop her momentum from her rush, her lower chest region was open to attack. I wasn't going to miss such a rare chance from not being ready to retaliate.

I brought my right knee up in front of myself and preformed a front leg side kick targeted at her rib cage. Having limited my power outburst, I was able to push her back and use the speed of her own attack to launch her a couple meters away from me.

A loud crash emitted by the gym equipment falling to the floor was a sign the end of our match, Hayase smacked off a few dumbbells during her landing.

"…Roadhouse." With our long anticipated contest coming to an end, I lowered my stance and took a bow toward her direction. Forgetting my manners after a fight was something that I never had done.

"…Winner, Shirogane." Captain Isumi announced my victory a few seconds after. However, it seemed that everyone else had yet to reclaim their senses, since they witnessed the fight that just took place.

"…Shirogane, if you ever need anything. Just come to me, I'll cover for you, boi." Munakata was the first to come back to her wits, having observed the nearly invincible 1st Lt. Hayase lose a one on one.

"Takeru-chan! You won!"

"Good job, Takeru-san." Sumika and Kasumi came to my side and cheered me for winning.

"1st Lt. Hayase got beat… by that new guy? How is that possible?" Akane was having a hard time accepting the truth.

"Akane! You can't address a superior officer like that!" I ignored her remark since Suzumiya probably will discipline her later.

"Shirogane, you just defeated the strongest member of A-01. I guess the professor's recommendation wasn't off." Isumi approached me to congratulate my success, soon followed by the rest of the Valkyries.

"Awwhah, Shirogane! I didn't think you would be this talented of a fighter, sorry for my attitude earlier!" Hearing words of apology from Hayase herself was a bigger victory than anything else.

"Hehe, My words about my skills are never a bluff. What I can say, I can do. Other than that, are you alright, Hayase? I kicked you pretty hard, after all."

"Thanks for worrying. I don't really feel that much pain now." Even if this was a bluff. To stand up and move around not a minute after being sent flying was really incredible.

"If your skills in close quarter can match that of Hayase's. I will look forward to you piloting a TSF." Isumi had high hopes for my future performance, expectation unlike for me to fail. We continued our chat into the PX and eventually dispersed when there was nothing else to talk about.

 **Shirogane's room**

After eating our dinner I returned to my room, Sumika and Kasumi paid me a night visit. The normal kind, not the exciting kind.

"Takeru-chan! What are you doing?" Maybe not hitting Sumika for some time had caused her to not be able to calm herself down.

"Takeru-san, are you playing your game?" Kasumi was smart enough to observe before asking a stupid question.

"Yep, I get really bored most of the time." I turned off my Gameguy and motioned for them to sit down.

"We really are going on the battlefield, in a week, right? Takeru-chan, make sure you protect the both of us."

"Please protect us, Takeru-san." The two girls asked me for a favour I had long ago accepted.

"Without a doubt. The two of you will never be hurt as long as I'm around." I promised to care of them under any circumstances; a broken promise was the last thing I would allow to happen.

"Hey, are you two hungry?" I reached under my bed and pulled out three cups of instant ramen.

"Aw, Takeru-chan! I haven't had these noodles in so long."

"Takeru-san's instant ramen. Thank you." I went to prepare some water for the noodle. I myself didn't eat any yet, saving them for a better time was the better choice, now was one of those times.

We enjoyed our night snack in my room while talking about nothing in particular.

"Takeru-chan, do you think there would be a day when we can eat different flavour of this noodle?" Sumika leaned on me and wanted my assumption of the future.

"Yeah, that day will probably come. And when it does, we can take everyone out to enjoy some top-notch restaurant food." I hugged Sumika back, her tender body feels so warm even if she happened to be a robot. It was all the same to me.

"What would a 'top-notch' restaurant be like?" Kasumi was the one to question about a location she never got the chance to know. Sumika pulled her closer on my bed and embraced her in between us.

"An excellent restaurant is a very expensive place, you have to wear very good cloths to get in. But the food they serve is amazing! I think. It was all thanks to Takeru-chan that we didn't get to enjoy any of that!" Sumika shot me a playful glare. I remembered when Meiya reserved the entire place just for me and Sumika, it was crazy how she could just buy that giant boat so easily. Being the top one percent just let her do whatever she wanted back in the old world.

"That did happen, hehe. This time, I will order the most extravagant meal they have! It will be to make up for the beef bowls that I requested last time. We will all get to fancy the great food that is out there without holding back!" Thinking about it, my beef bowl idea was fucking retarded. Cringe-worthy how I would be too sacred to order a real meal.

"This time, Takeru-chan? You promise?"

"Yeah, I promise. Will you come with us, Kasumi? I buy you some great stuff as well."

"Yes, Takeru-san. I would love to join you." And just like that, another promise toward the future was made. Toward a happy tomorrow where we can all appreciate our life in peace, where all my friends and loved ones would be together.

 **November 27, 2001**

 **PX**

"Heyyy! Takeru!" I was called by Mikoto on my way to pick up some food in the PX.

"Yeah, what is it?" I returned after grabbing something to eat and took it to our table.

"Takeru, we need your advice on something." I most likely knew what Meiya was about to say.

"Well… The truth is, The Undersecretary is coming here tomorrow…"

"Tama's father, what about him?" My squad started to give me surprised looks before quickly turning back to normal.

"So we were wondering what to do about—"

"Aauu…aauu…aaaauauau…" Meiya's sentence got cut off by Tama's dampen moans.

"I know, let me try to guess the problem." I wanted to predict the future again.

"That's right! Miki-san told he father in a letter that she was th— Muuu!" I covered up Mikoto's mouth before she could ruin my chance at impressing the team.

"Mikoto, shut up! Anyway, I will guess that Tama told her father that she is the squad leader or something, so now we have a problem on our hands." Mikoto got her freedom back once I recalled the future, which was only the past for me.

"That's right, Takeru. Do you have a suggestion then, squad leader?" Class rep wanted me to solve any and all problems now that I was the head, how demanding.

"Sure, I will make Tama the squad leader for a single day."

"Haa… somehow I knew that Takeru would say that… I have nothing to add." Exactly, because who was the boss now? ME.

"Takeru-chan, you meanie."

"Takeru-san, bully." Sumika and Kasumi both criticized me for acting as a squad leader should.

"Aauu…aauu…" Tama had a long road of suffering in front of her.

"Well, now that I decided what to do. I will announce the items we need and the person in charge of it…"

"Hey, hey Takeru?" Mikoto felt the need to cut me off right then.

"Hm? What is it? Must you interrupt me at this moment, Mikoto?"

"More importantly, look, those Eishis over there are giving us funny looks." Mikoto pointed my attention over by the line-up.

"Don't worry about them, they probably are just jealous of my amazing skills. I heard rumors spreading about me being a superhuman." Class rep avoided my gaze, making it obvious she started the whole thing.

"…But, their eyes look…" Mikoto couldn't help but pick up the hostile intent from those garbage.

"It's fine, you girls are the ones I want to talk to right now."

"…You're quite bold today, squad leader. Just like any day." Ayamine found my behaviour to be no different from my norm.

"…They really are glaring at us." Tama was getting uncomfortable by the looks that were shot our way.

"Fine, just give me a minute." I will have to just take out the trash, personally.

—

"Hey you, the cadet." The male Eishi called out to me when I walked by.

"Yeah? You mean me?"

"You see anyone else here?" The female Eishi aided her partner.

"Guess not. You need something, Second Lieutenant?"

"Aren't you a cocky one, is that your whole squad over there?" The male continued his interrogation.

"Yep."

"No ninety member?"

"There are eight of us." I almost forgot to count Sumika and Kasumi when I answered on reflex.

"Then what about that special TSF in the hanger… the brand new Imperial Honor Guard model? Whose is it? I heard it was one of yours." I noticed Meiya walked over and was about to answer his question.

"Excuse me, I need to ask my squad member." I came up with a justification for them to let me exit. Stopping Meiya from leaking information was the priority.

I pulled her to the side before the trashes could stop me.

"Meiya, you were about to tell them the truth, yes?" I whispered in her ear to keep our voices down.

"Yes, Takeru. As a lower ranking member of the military, I have to answer to a superior. They were also giving you trouble." Meiya was concerned for me, which was good. But she called those scums superior, which was bad.

"Listen, Meiya. This will be a piece of advice from your actual superior. There are people in this world that doesn't deserve any respect, from anyone. Some of these people happened to join the military for unknown reasons, and right here stands two great examples of them bastards." Meiya seemed a little anxious by my insult to the two fellow Eishis without remorse.

"But still, are those people not our comrades? And they are still higher ranking than the rest of us." Hearing my girl call them that almost made me threw up, I grabbed her by the shoulders and gazed right into those sharp eyes.

"Listen very carefully now, Meiya. Those 'things' shouldn't count as human, it was Mother Nature's accident that they somehow got born as people."

"Takeru! Even if it is from you, it is still not right for you to insult others like that!"

"Now you don't have to agree with my opinion. By the fact is that they're currently being extremely disruptive, right? Now normally, as a cadet you would be forced into answering their questions. But fortunately, you got me and Professor Kouzuki backing you up. There will be no problems if you are to reject their request without mercy."

I could have done it myself. However, I thought it would be more beneficial if Meiya learned to speak for herself.

"Nonetheless, Takeru… how should I…" The method was still missing from Meiya's knowledge, a quick lesson was in demand.

"Meiya, just tell them how you feel. You don't have to hate them like I do, but you need to make sure that your point can be clearly received. You need to be strong in the field of dealing with unwanted people as well. We can't live without others causing us problems. Be fierce, Meiya, be fierce."

She was still deep in thought about her task that she should perform.

"But still, are they rank not higher than me? Is it really okay for me disobey their order?" I'll admit she looked really cute when she asked for my support.

"Look, Meiya. This is another time where you have to choose for yourself. You could just do as you're told, answer their question. Right now though, you have a different option, do you not?"

"I… alright, Takeru. So I just need to tell them my perspective?"

"You should do exactly that." Meiya ceased her indecisive wander and nodded at me with dedication.

"Hey! Are you cadets over there done with your chitchat?!" Their timing was right on mark, I stepped to the side for Meiya to take center stage.

"Yes, what was your question again, Second Lieutenant?"

"I asked who owns that Imperial TSF in the hanger, I know it's someone in your squad." The guy Eishi started to target Meiya when she took over for me.

"Second Lieutenant. I have no obligation to share with you the information of my squad mates. If it is for a serious purpose, please file the request to your superior and let your superior decide if it is important for you to acquire this knowledge. However, if this is for personally reasons. I would ask you to stop bothering us and return to your supposed task."

If I had a mic right then, I would give it to Meiya for her to drop it on the floor. The expression of rage these two garbage were showing was not even satisfying to watch.

"You little…!" This guy actually tried to punch Meiya. What an interesting turn of event as I seized his wrist.

"Let me rephrase her line in case you mongrels are too unintelligent to understand. What she meant is that you two should claw back to whatever hole you came out of and stay there before you cause the air quality around us to go down. The UN has no need for shitheads like you, now fuck off before I decide to personally send you back to the waste container that you belong."

There were a few more points that I could had made, but the objective was reached regardless. These two Eishis were furiously outraged by my statement.

"Damn you punk…!" The arm that I just released was pulled back and aimed to punch me again. The weak attack was stopped when I caught his fist tightly and didn't let go.

"Ah, you… let go!" It had been a long time since I changed my glare from my normal lazy one to a different scowl that I didn't normally give to humans.

It was a frown that was intended for loathsome insect which would dirty the ground I stand on if they were in sight. Proving to be effective when the Eishis replaced their baseless arrogant with proper fear and horror.

"How dare you…! You are just a cadet! This is insubordination!" The man tried to use his rank as a shield the moment he realized that he was no match for the likes of me.

"That would be true, if my rank is a cadet. Which it is. You are free to file a complaint against me if you so choose. Still, you should prepare for the consequences that could appear if you were to do so." I threatened him without revealing anything, using my rank on these mongrels would be the greatest insult to myself.

"Hey, just… just calm down, alright? We were just curious… just let us go and… we will pretend nothing ever happened…" My demeanor seemed to had affected the pair, they tried to turn and run once the grasped they stood no chance.

"Leave, now. The same will not happen again if I am to see your faces here." I decided it wasn't worth it to pursue this matter any further.

"C-come on! Let's go."

"Ah, yeah…" And the two disappeared through the hallway.

—

"How you holding up, Meiya? That was fun, wasn't it?" I patted Meiya's back, she seemed to be holding her breath for the duration of our conversation.

"That… that was scary, Takeru! I did not think you would just offend those two without precaution!" Unfortunately, Meiya didn't appear to have enjoyed it as much as I did.

"Heh, there was no reason to be careful. Both my rank and my status will protect us no matter what they tried to pull." I reassured Meiya no blowback would befall us.

"Shirogane, you are an excessively inelegant man, aren't you." From around the corner, Tsukuyomi and the three idiots were the next ones to show up.

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. Long-time no see." I greeted her with sincerely for a change.

"Tsukuyomi… I have something I wish to speak to you in private." Meiya found that time to be a good time for her request.

"Of course, Meiya-sama. Where should we head for?"

"How about the tree behind the base, then? That place doesn't have much traffic." I suggested a classic spot for any secret gatherings.

"That is fine, Takeru. Is it alright for us to go there?" Meiya sought Tsukuyomi's approvement.

"Anywhere you like, Meiya-sama." Tsukuyomi had no reasons to disagree.

 _Sumika, Meiya and I will be away for a while. Tell the others if they ask._ I informed Sumika before we went on our way.

 **That classic tree behind Hakuryou**

"Meiya-sama, is it alright for Shirogane to listen in?" Tsukuyomi took notice of me when I didn't leave after guiding them.

"There is no problem. He is the one who shown me the reason for my request."

"What is it you would like, Meiya-sama?" Tsukuyomi patiently waited for Meiya's reply.

"I want to pilot the Takemikazuchi." Meiya told her without hesitation.

"I see. May I ask what did Shirogane tell you for you to change your mind?" Curious, Tsukuyomi wished to know how I influenced Meiya.

"He told me that I would need power to protect my friends, to protect this country."

"I see… Meiya-sama. That Takemikazuchi has always belonged to you. But if you must ask me, I have no objections for you to use it. Please allow that machine to be of assistance and protect those that are important to you." I knew Tsukuyomi would never say no to that request of Meiya's, she was the one who agreed during our attack on Kashgar for the first loop.

"Thank you, Tsukuyomi."

"Meiya-sama. I know it is unreasonable for me to ask this, but would you mind giving me some time alone with Shirogane?" Tsukuyomi asked to be alone with me, it was unexpected of her to do so.

"Very well, I will be going first." With a stylish twist of her waist, Meiya bid us farewell and returned on her own.

"Tsukuyomi. I don't remember entering your route." I could had done something else other than starting our conversation with a retort.

"Cadet Shirogane, I have no time for jokes." Always the serious one.

"What would you like to discuss then, it's not like I got so much time to waste."

"Since Meiya-sama had decided to trust you. I shall do the same as well, for now." Again, Tsukuyomi was just full of surprises this day.

"And what had led you to that conclusion?"

"I had never seen Meiya-sama behave that hostile toward others, I suppose the blame would fall on you for what you whispered to her earlier." I nodded quickly since there was nothing to hide.

"However, as the world these days is such an… unfriendly place. I won't mind having Meiya-sama start to speak for herself. And you stopped the man when he tried to use violence on Meiya-sama. For that, you have my thanks." Tsukuyomi was appreciating me earnestly right then. I never ceased to be amazed by the changes in this loop.

"It was nothing, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. Like I told you, Meiya's safety is very important to me as well."

"And this is the reason that I shall trust you on. Please… protect Meiya-sama." Tsukuyomi seriously depended on me for Meiya's safety, I only smiled off her doubt as I knew nothing would make me think otherwise.

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. I already said that we share the same goals. No matter what happens, I will ensure that Meiya will not be harmed."

"Is that so, I shall thank you for your effort, then."

"And you as well." We ended our exchange without another word and headed our separate ways.

 **Shirogane's room**

Having confirmed our plan to make Tama the squad leader for the day, I was just relaxing in my room, letting Kasumi play on my Gameguy.

"Cadet Shirogane! Open this door!" Marimo-chan was surely here for afternoon incident that had happened, or maybe just some tea.

"Sup, Marimo-chan." I lazily got off my ass and opened my door to let her in.

"Cad— Shirogane, please fix that habit." Marimo-chan was still affected by my rank when we were alone. She gave Kasumi a salute as well, which Kasumi slowly returned in kind.

"Why are you here, Instructor?"

"This is about the incident in the PX, you are asked if you would want to enforce punishment on the two Eishis." Thankfully Marimo-chan knew just dishing out sentence would cause suspicions.

"Naah, I don't want for my rank to be used on anything related to those lesser ones. I'll overlook their offense. It would create problems for me if other wonders as to why they are the ones penalized for conflict with a cadet."

"Understood… ahh, that was a waste of time, then." I caught Marimo-chan muttered words to herself.

"Hey, what happened? Did everyone vouch for me or something?" I expected that this was the mostly likely case.

"Yeah, many did. 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi, one of the Imperial Honor Guard stationed on this base did just that. So did everyone in your squad. They all came to petition me one at a time… it was worse than if they all come in as a group."

"Each one of them spent an average of ten minutes in my office. Even Ayamine silently stared at me for five minutes straight. I'm busy too, you know… and they didn't even have any good counter arguments prepared. You would have gotten a week in detention, at minimal. If you are actually a cadet." I was glad the team already thought of me as a friend to care for.

"Good work, Marimo-chan. Kyozuka-oba-chan stopped you as well, right? Sorry that this had to fall on you." I rubbed Kasumi's head, knowing she did the same.

"It's only been a month since you came here. Yet, you've built up a solid relationship with the rest of your squad. I could lecture you about taking responsibility for your actions. But you already know that, don't you Shirogane?" Marimo-chan was nice enough to not blab on, not like I would have mind.

"Of course, I was taught this a long time ago, but a great Instructor who I will never forget." That Instructor obviously being Marimo-chan.

"Good, take care of your squad, you are a valuable member of the team."

"Uh-huh." I answered clearly.

"I also heard news that you guys with be making Tama squad leader for the day. I can't really stop you, please just don't make a ruckus and bring me more work, Shirogane." Poor, poor Marimo-chan.

"Hehehe, I will keep that in mind."

"That is all, thank you for your time, Shirogane." Marimo-chan saluted me and Kasumi before leaving.

—

"Hey! Tama!" I shouted the name of the cat girl in the hallway.

"Awahh… you found me…" Tama was startled by my loud voice. I was already aware she would be here, so I cried out without actually seeing her.

"What are you doing?"

"I saw the Instructor heading for your room… and got worried…"

"Thanks, Tama." I gave her a gentle pat for her caring heart.

"No… it's okay…besides, everyone's…" I spotted Class rep hiding around the corner, with half of her body exposed like a comical assassin.

"I-I was just… waiting here since I thought it'd be rude to walk by while the Instructor was still talking…"

"Yeah? Sure, sure." Her terrible excuse was terrible.

"I was… counting the stains in the corridor…" Mikoto appeared from behind, also came up with a stupid justification which I didn't even ask for.

"Wow, how specific."

"Random whim…" Ayamine didn't even bother to try.

"That's nice… sure." I was finding the reactions of the squad to be highly entertaining.

"I-I was… I was…"

"Coming back from your independent training?" I voted to help Meiya out.

"Tha- that's… I was worried about you…" Her words stole the attention of everyone near us.

"Hah, thanks Meiya. And thank you all for coming to see me." I discarded my dense self and recognized my squad's acts of kindness. They all painted their face in red as the result.

"N-never mind that! What punishment did you receive, Takeru?" Class rep used the classic diversion tactic to try and keep my mind off their reactions.

"I didn't receive anything. Professor Kouzuki helped me out with it." I made sure no one was around us when I told them the truth, problems would arise if others know about my relationship with Yuuko-sensei.

"Eh? The professor? Takeru-san really has many connections." Tama took the facts quite well, the others also weren't puzzled that I got off scot-free.

"I feel like that Takeru is abusing his powers here, what a squad leader you are…" I couldn't say that didn't happen so I let Class rep off this one time.

"Well, I will be going then…" Mikoto was the first to sound the alarm for retreat.

"Ah, me too!"

"See you later, Takeru. Don't go around bullying others, okay?" Class rep and Ayamine both pulled out without another word.

"Meiya, you staying?" I glanced over to Meiya, who didn't move from her spot.

"Takeru… I have yet to thank you for what you had done. So please accept my gratitude for helping me today." Meiya lowered her head for a bow towards me, I stopped her with haste before she finished.

"Meiya, there is no need for you to thank me. I did what I did because I believed it to be the right thing to do. However, I will take your gratefulness to heart." Like Tsukuyomi, my goal was Meiya's best interest this whole time.

"Takeru… I… have a good night…" Meiya couldn't finish her original thoughts. I didn't push her for it and instead just let her go with a smile.

"Takeru-san. I will be going back as well." I forgot about Kasumi's existence until that moment. Her stealth capabilities rivalled that of a ninja, or a F-22.

"Oh, alright Kasumi. Good night." I waved her off and went to sleep myself.

 **November 28, 2001**

 **PX**

"Undersecretary, this is the Yokohama Base Eishi Training School cafeteria." We all saluted Tama's father when he and Marimo-chan appear during my squad's morning chat.

"Oh?"

"I hereby introduce you to the cadets of Eishi Training Squadron 207." Marimo-chan made a round until the Undersecretary met everyone one of us.

"Humanity's future rests on your shoulders. Can we count on you?"

"—yes, sir!" I hadn't replied with respect in a long time, probably was not a good habit to build on.

"From here on, Cadet Tamase will guide you. Cadet Tamase!" Marimo-chan exchanged with Tama and her father for some time, until the tour of the PX was over and Tama led the train to the barracks.

 **Barracks**

"Tama, salute. Make them do it." I reminded the nervous girl about military manners.

"Ah… s-salute!"

"We have been awaiting your arrival!" Class rep and Ayamine declared in unison.

"A-at ease!" those two relaxed to a normal posture.

"Let's see here, so you're Tama's subordinates?" The Undersecretary started a friendly conversation. As for me, I was only waiting for the show to begin.

"…You're Tama too…" There it was, I will never get bored of hearing it. Ayamine replied with godlike speed a rude comment others took a while to process.

"Hm…?"

"…Tama Papa." And she was still keeping it going.

"…Moustache." Ayamine was on a roll right then, it was luckless for Tama put a stop to it.

"H-hold your tongue! Don't just stand there, step aside!" Tama barked out some orders that Ayamine was less than pleased to hear.

"…My apologies, squad leader."

"That was so dignified. Well done, Tamaaaa…! Such a good girl, Tama. Come on, there, there~" She was so about to get it.

"Ehehe… yes! Th-thank you very much!"

"I'd like to see you give plenty more orders, Tama~ Hm? How about it?" What a beautiful bonding experience.

"Y-you over there! If you've got nothing better to do. Go clean the latrines!" Kasumi was again caught in the crossfire. My poor girl stood in shock for a few seconds before running off, probably to follow her order.

"Hm? You were with us earlier…" The Undersecretary took notice of Class rep next.

"I am Cadet Sakaki Chizuru!" Class rep and Tama's dad had a relatively normal talk until his unrealized offence.

"Yes, yes. I've heard that you're stubborn, won't listen to people and easily misunderstand things, just like your father." It was at this moment that Tama knew, she fucked up.

"Don't cause Tama too much trouble." Class rep let out a sound that barely passed as an answer, the blow she took was fairly high levelled.

"Hm? You are…" The Undersecretary had his eyes on Mikoto this time.

"Sir! I am Cadet Yoroi Mikoto!"

"Oh-hoo… so you're that Yoroi-kun whose chest is even flatter than Tama's." What a critical hit on Mikoto's pride.

"Ahh. WAAAA! You know I hate it when people bring this up! I HAAATE YOU!" She spirited off, crying loudly.

"Takeru-san… help meeee~"

"Tama, this is what you call an uncontrollable situation. Good luck." I showed Tama a thumb up and smirked for my own enjoyment.

"Hm? You are…"

"I am Cadet Mitsurugi Meiya!" Meiya was the next to be picked on, more precisely to not get picked on.

"I see, so you're…" And the man spoke nothing else.

"…Hm? You have nothing to say regarding me?

"…It is a matter of life and death."

"…I see." What wasn't said could be seen as the greatest joke.

"Hauu… aauuuuuu… Takeru-san, please don't abandon me~" Tama begged for my help.

"Hahaha, Tama. Did I teach you that all of your actions have consequences?" I only laughed at her failure to take hold of this event.

"…Are you a new member?" Sumika materialized out of nowhere just in time for her to catch some flame as well.

"Ah, yes sir! I am Cadet Kagami Sumika!"

"Hm… I see." Tama's father moved on without another word.

" _Takeru-chan, why wasn't there a comment for me?_ " Sumika actually wanted to hear the Undersecretary's opinion of her.

 _Just consider yourself lucky and let this go._ I warned her not to dig too much, Tama's dad probably knows about Sumika's background somewhat. He didn't want to offend Yuuko-sensei's work.

"…And you are Shirogane Takeru-kun?" Finally my time had come.

"Yes sir!"

"I saw you earlier, but, yes, you truly are a fine young man." He complimented my outward appearance.

"Thank you very much, Sir."

"Your face isn't bad either. I've heard you have a good personality as well." He continued to shower me with words of approval,

"I've also heard you preform admirably in classes and training, and always keep a cool head. There are not many men like you left in this world."

"Thank you, sir."

"You would… yes, you'd do fine." He was about to say it, I knew.

"Take care of Tama for me. I want you to continue standing by Tama's side, just as you always have. I can't wait… wahahaha!" I felt the piercing glares of the other girls in my squad. It was different this time, due to me being the squad leader. I was safe from the potential abuse.

"Ahahaha! Indeed." I joined him in laughter, for a completely different reason.

"Well, I would like to see some grandchildren sometime soon. Some. Grandchildren. For. Me. Wahahaha…!" This was so precious, the entire moment.

"Hahaha!" I could see the faces of my teammates out of the corner of my eye, being protected from their wrath allows me to avoid the result of our talk.

"…Can I talk to you?" Class rep went for Tama, since she was the second guiltiest.

"Eh? Please… can we do it later?"

"Tamase, I must speak with you. This is urgent… is that okay?" Meiya also joined in for some revenge.

"Everyone! The Undersecretary is still here!" Tama's cry reached no one as Ayamine carried her from behind.

"Caught."

"Well done, Ayamine, we shall transport her like that."

"Nyaa! Ayamine-san! Please let go of me…!" Tama looked to be suffering.

"…I'll never let go."

"Guys! Please don't do this…!"

"Give it up. There are things in life… that you can't do anything about… fate is a cruel thing… I didn't want to be like this… uuu…" Mikoto merged with the party that planned on doing unspeakable things to Tama.

"Oooh, is this performance part of my welcome?" It seemed that even her dad had abandoned her.

"Takeru-san!~ Please helppppp!" Tama thought of me as her last hope.

"Tama… rest in peace." I gave her a final push into despair.

"AAHHH. Takeru-sannnnnn!"

"Good, take her away."

"Nyyyaaa!" And no one ever heard from Tama again.

"Huh? What just happened here, Takeru-chan?" Sumika came back with Kasumi, Looked like she didn't have to clean the washroom again.

"We will remember our fallen, right? Never forget, Sumika, Kasumi, never forget." I asked them to keep our cat-girl in their memories.

"Huuuuh? What is happening?"

"Okay." Kasumi and Sumika missed a great performance, the best one yet.

"Shirogane-kun. It appears that my daughter just got taken away." The Undersecretary called out to me as I was about to leave.

"Yes, Sir. Cadet Tamase was in fact kidnapped."

"Wahaha, impressive. I thought for sure they were going to get you." So Tama's dad wanted to watch my doom in her place.

"However, that no longer matters." He suddenly put on a serious expression, I did the same to prepare for his topic.

"You three are part of Kouzuki Professor's plan, am I right?"

"Yes, sir." I could answer him because he also should be informed about the alternative plans to some degree.

"I won't ask you anymore than that. We don't have much time, so I will tell you quick." The Undersecretary wished for a favour from me.

"What is it, sir?"

"My daughter, please keep her in good care. I ask of you as the leader of this squad." Tama's father was very considerate of Tama, protecting her is one of my most important goals.

"Of course, sir. I will not let you down."

"That is good to hear, Shirogane-kun. I know what will happen in the future would be tough and unforgiving. But I believe you can overcome those dilemmas! Wahahahah…" He patted my back and walked away, didn't even bother to turn around and check my answer.

"Takeru-chan, was that Miki's dad?" Sumika tilted her head and asked me.

"Yeah, yeah it was." The Undersecretary was a strange person. But I knew he cares about Tama as much as I do, maybe even more.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"You don't need to me tell you that the operation is in two days, right?" Sensei called for me later at night.

"Yep, the cave exploration, I can hardly wait." On one hand, I was getting all fired up to finally fight some killable enemies. Yet I knew just about how fun that will be.

"How was the visit from The Undersecretary?" Yuuko-sensei wanted to know about today's event.

"It was fine, he knows a bit about Alternative IV right? Today he asked me if I was a part of your plans."

"Yeah, it's not a problem. I told him some basic things about you and your escorts. Nothing he shouldn't know already." I just had to make sure.

"That's all good then. About my personally data, sensei…"

"That, I already took care of it. The First section of the Household Department Information Division was digging around for anyone suspicious near Mitsurugi, you just stood out with the cover up you used to have. I changed it so no one will suspect anything else." Which was much appreciated.

"Good stuff, sensei. Having a black paper for my background is definitely going to catch some attention. Anything else?"

"Your orders are finally here, Shirogane." Yuuko-sensei passed me a cardboard container that would be difficult to carry with one arm.

"Take these and go satisfy your fetish. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

"Yuuko-sensei, you got to calm down with your assumptions. I am a perfectly healthy young man without any ulterior motives when it comes to girls." I would like to think of myself as one, anyway.

"Alright, alright. Take your stuff and go, I have other things to work on." Sensei's final line got me interested.

"What are you working on then?" I couldn't let sensei plan anything behind my back. Although she was clearly not stupid enough to let it slip.

"I had been studying the reactor here and finding weakness in the hive system. If what you said about their information sharing is true. We almost have no ways other than attack the Kashgar hive directly."

Her research subject was a big problem for us. The way the BETA shared their knowledge made it very problematic for us to gain any ground without leaking our trump card.

"Then keep on working sensei. I will take my leave." I took my box and left her office.

"Good night, Shirogane."

"Good night, Yuuko-sensei."

 **Author's note**

Emm... So, summer is over. So yeah... (Crying in a corner, be back later)

Since summer is over, the updates will slow down for obvious reasons. It is unfortunate, but such is life. I try to roll one out every week but don't hold me on that promise. I also added some really crappy chapter titles for people to cringe over so that's good. If you have any questions or problems related to this story, please PM me or something. And review and whatever, I don't even know... AHHHHAAAA MY VACATION!

Proofreading was done by chad001. Thanks boy, for pointing out the single least important mistakes. I'm never going to change it from now on. (Seriously, though, thank for the help this time as well.)

Finally updated some poorly written parts. Again, while my BETA us always hard at work, don't hesitate to PM me any mistakes you spot. Old and new chapters alike.


	8. Real combat can't be this appealing

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 29, 2001**

 **Hanger**

"So, if we do see it as a sort of a program. There must be a way to shut down its processer from outside."

"But even I can't confirm that… We are sure that the reactor is capable of transferring and receiving information from Target one. But its true components are still unknown." Yuuko-sensei came to me during the day of the mock battle. We were discussing BETA and their fancy organic weaponry.

"Ahha… This doesn't help, Shiroganeee. The reactor here isn't giving me anything to work with. And we don't have any data about the other hives."

"Sorry, sensei. I'm a soldier, nonetheless. I'm not an expert of your level."

"…Oh, Yuuko… and Shirogane?" Marimo-chan postponed my discussion with Yuuko-sensei about the hive reactor.

"Marimo-chan. Welcome." I greeted Marimo-chan normally since no one else was watching.

"Shirogane… you just won't change your habit, huh?" Marimo-chan didn't even attempted to act bothered by it.

"What are the teams for today's mock battle again?" Yuuko-sensei detracted the topic instantly to our setup for the fight.

"It will be Shirogane, Sakaki, Ayamine and Yoroi against Kagami, Mitsurugi, Tamase and Yashiro." What a ridiculous team setup.

"At least make it three on five, Marimo-chan. With the same number, it's not even fun for me to destroy only four people."

"How confident, Shirogane. For someone who never joined the simulation training you sure can talk big." Marimo-chan fired back, unhappy with my constant skipping.

"Marimo-chan, please. Just ask Yuuko-sensei. My skills are second to none." I was very convinced of my chance at victory.

"Marimo, could you bring a Mobile Command Post for me? I'm gonna monitor Shirogane's team with it." I was straight up ignored by the professor.

"Eh…? W-wait a minute… what're are you talking about? You already changed the victory condition to total annihilation without my—" I stopped listening considering that what they were talking about was the same in all of the loops. Yuuko-sensei will get what she wants and there is nothing Marimo-chan can do about it.

—

"Salute!" I shouted once the rest of the squad gathered and Yuuko-sensei disappeared.

"Alright, 207 squad! I will announce the teams for today's mock battle! Shirogane, Sakaki, Ayamine and Yoroi against Mitsurugi, Tamase, Kagami and Yashiro! Your objective is compete annihilation of the hostile team! The team leaders will be Shirogane and Kagami respectively. Once all units are ready, we will move out!" Marimo-chan informed us of the rules and we moved to our TSF.

"Instructor, will we be using standard loadout?" The question was actually asked by Kasumi, the least active person in our crew.

"Yeah, regular Fubuki with a single rifle, a sword and two knives. That also means Mitsurugi can't use her Type-00, understand?"

"Ma'am!" Meiya replied in place of Kasumi, who had already left to inspect her frame.

—

"Takeru-chan! You are going to join us today?" Sumika came over to me before I hopped aboard my Fubuki.

"Yeah, can't just ditch class forever. And unlike the simulations. I will be fighting against you girls this time. A good chance for me to wreck some greenhorns."

"Takeru-chan! How could you be this disrespectful! I'm gonna beat you today and show you that you are not as good as you think!" Sumika told me a hilarious joke just then. I showed respect that she thought I didn't have by laughing.

"Sure! Sure, yeah okay. Are you even good in a TSF?" I couldn't reminisce if Sumika can ride a bicycle.

"Of course! I got the second highest score after you! Don't think you can just beat our team this easily, Takeru-chan!" She was so excited thinking she can beat me.

"Then I will test out your piloting skills personally. If you can hold your own, I give you a treat or something."

"Yaay! Takeru-chan is the best! I'm going to kick your dumb butt!" She happily skipped off to her unit after that exchange.

Been a while since I last piloted an actual unit, even longer for a Fubuki. I surveyed around the controls and instantly remembered all the moves I could do as the ace pilot of the UN. I couldn't say I missed piloting a surface fighter. If peaceful life were to ever return, I wouldn't mind forgetting these days of vicious bloodshed. But as the situation stood now, these techniques are essential for me to protect the world.

 **Hiiragi ruins**

Our two teams separated once we reached the battlefield. We had fifteen minutes before combat started. I was just sitting in my cockpit, thinking of ways to make fun of Sumika once the battle concludes.

"Takeru, why are you just joining us in TSF training?" My comms opened up and from it, Class rep's glasses popped up.

"Because this isn't training, this is combat."

"Takeru… battle crazy." Ayamine just threw Hayase's nickname at me, very inappropriate.

"Takeru is on our team though! He will do great!" Mikoto got my back in our conversation.

"I'm not so sure. I mean, we never seen his piloting outside the aptitude test, he never attended any of our training section either. Takeru, can you really hold your own with the new OS?" Class rep was brutal with her doubts. I wasn't sure if my heart could take much of this torture.

"The squad leader doesn't participate…" And Ayamine just mistrusted my position as the leader.

"Just sit tight, alright? You can all be astounded by my piloting after we defeat the other team. Show some good teamwork and I will let you clean after me." I didn't think Class rep and Ayamine still fight as much as they used to. This was great news for me. There wasn't a need for me to waste time getting them to make up with each other all the time.

"Five minutes until mock battle starts." Marimo-chan reminded us of our remaining time.

"I will repeat one last time your battle objectives. In this mock battle, Data Link is down so you can't detect your friendlies in real-time. Your mission is to completely destroy the enemy's forces. A time limit of one hour will be in place. After the time limit is reached, whichever team has more undamaged TSF left will be the winner. Is that clear?"

"Ma'am!" Everyone answered enthusiastically. All were looking forward to their first combat in real TSF.

"Alright team, we will divide off into two groups. Mikoto is with me and Class rep is with Ayamine. If your team mess this up gets taken out, we can spent some quality time together discussing your punishments. We will charge right in and your team can watch the rear." I intimidated Class rep and Ayamine in the case that they still can't work together.

"The mock battle will now begin!" Following Marimo-chan's single. I boosted straight forward with Mikoto lagging a bit behind me.

—

"Mock battle over! Winner, Kagami's team!" Marimo-chan declared the end of our first real battle. Which also happened to be the most bullshit I ever witnessed in combat.

The combat started out nicely as I spotted Tama, who was involuntarily handed the unfortunate task of being the bait. I chased her around the map leisurely until Meiya took over and engaged me in a sword fight.

During my duel with her, Mikoto got her rear blazed up by Kasumi who turned off her IFF from the get go. Tama regrouped with Sumika who was attempting to flank me from my rear while Meiya acted as distraction.

To that point, I was enjoying every moment of their futile struggle. With Meiya's experience using the XM3, she fought valiantly in opposition with me. I shot her up after taking much more time than I initially planned.

The time that I lost was used to their advantage when both Kasumi and Tama pinned me down with suppressive fire. Class rep and Ayamine were apparently stuck facing off against Sumika.

To their credit, they cooperated together nicely and managed to critically disable Sumika's surface fighter before getting brought down. In the meantime, I took out Tama and incapacitated Kasumi's weapons during our combat.

Kasumi hauled ass out of the fight when she realized her chance of defeating me was infinitely close to zero. With the pressure totally gone from me, the battle turned into a game of cat-and-mouse with a very skillful hunter.

 **Hanger**

"Takeru… I believe that you took our combat training too easily."

"…Takeru, stupid idiot."

"Takeru-san… it's okay, everyone makes mistakes."

"Ahh… Takeru, I can't believe you did that…" Everyone surrounded me and taunted my defeat, even my teammates.

"Hehe! Takeru-chan! I told you we could win this!"

"Told you, Takeru-san."

"Shut up, Kasumi. You didn't tell me anything."

I thought I had the game in the bag, I did… after the battle turned into a two-on-one, my grander piloting skills were sure to win me any fight. I toyed with the two remaining survivors, only tagging their arms and weapons.

That proved to be my downfall when the time limit crept up without me realizing… I should fall a tall building somewhere…

"Takeru-chan! So about the prize for doing good. When are you going to give it to me?" Being depressed wouldn't help me in anyway so I quickly recovered back to my normal status.

"Yeah, not only for you, I got something for everyone. Well, almost everyone." The others turned toward me, wondering what I could have in store for them. But they couldn't further their questioning when sensei showed up.

"Hello, everybody. How was the mock battle, was it fun seeing Shirogane make a fool out of himself?" Yuuko-sensei disrespected me first thing when she joined us. I got revenge by not ordering the squad to salute her, it did nothing as the team saluted her anyway.

"So, a few things then. First, what do all of you think about the new OS?"

"It was amazing, Professor!"

"Indeed, the operating system allowed me to move the TSF as if it were a part of my body."

"The reaction time was extremely fast. I didn't know the difference could be this big."

"It was great…"

"I feel like I could do anything I want with those! They let me move so smoothly!"

Everyone rated my invention highly. From their performance, it was clear that their piloting abilities had increased significantly compared to how they did during the beginning loops.

"Is that so, I'm sure its creator would be very happy to know that." Yuuko-sensei winked to me, I showed a mile grin as reply.

"The creator being yours truly." I pointed myself out with pride.

"Eh…?"

"That was… boring. Shouldn't you all be more surprised? I invented a brand new concept for TSF controlling!" Their reaction was lackluster compared to what I had in mind.

"As I said before, your performances cannot shock me anymore."

"Well… If it's Takeru-san. It really was expected."

"I sorta guessed Takeru would be involved with the new OS. But it's great that you are the one to design it!"

"Well done… Squad leader."

"Thanks, Takeru. Your new OS really improved our effectiveness by a lot." I just accepted the passable compliments and shut up.

"Kouzuki Professor, is it really okay for you to not report this new system? This could affect the entire UN Army." Marimo-chan questioned sensei's decision to keep the XM3 classified from the higher ups.

"It's fine, Marimo. I don't plan on letting anyone else know about this. This is part of my 'research' It's not something we can talk about here… understand? " Marimo-chan's concern was brushed off by sensei.

"Yes." Marimo-chan couldn't openly disobey a superior, not like she was the kind of person to do it secretly either.

"Then I will be going now. Take care of the rest." Yuuko-sensei strolled off now that she had no business with us. I dismissed the squad as well, didn't need them to see me cry.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

I entered Yuuko-sensei's office to meet up with a very special man.

"If you are looking for the Professor, she went to the Command Center." I was informed of sensei's location by a voice in the dark room.

"I see, thank you for your intel." I was very respectful that day, didn't want to create bad impressions.

"I don't think we met before."

"No. No, we certainly did not." I was sure that this was my first meeting with the intelligence officer.

"You're a very elaborate fake… Hmm." I batted away his hands before he could yank my face as he wished.

"Please, I can assure you there is nothing fake about myself."

"Wahaha… you are an interesting person. There undoubtedly isn't anything fake about you." Yoroi found my attitude to be entertaining, which I wouldn't disagree.

"Shirogane Takeru… the real one…"

"So are you, Yoroi Sakon… san" I was very impressed by his lack of reaction to me calling his name, Mikoto's dad was something else. Even I had a hard time reading this man. Although he would be fired instantly if he show his surprise.

"You do know me then, Shirogane Takeru-kun."

"Of course, it would be insulting if I couldn't recognize a worker from the Imperial Ministry of Intelligence if I see one. Specifically a member of Foreign Affairs Section Two." Even when I said his exact occupation, the man still didn't seemed to be bothered.

"I'm quite proud of this suit actually, it's a valuable piece you'd have trouble finding nowadays. The material feels simply incredible… want to try touching it yourself? Shirogane Takeru-kun?" He derailed the topic to confuse me, it wasn't like I needed to push him for any knowledge that I knew he wouldn't give. I just went along with it.

"Is that okay? If you don't mind then." I reached out and rubbed his suit. This man was very honest about the quality of his outfit, suits like these are a very rare find nowadays.

"It definitely feels excellent, I envy you for being in possession of such a great getup."

"How nice of you to say, Shirogane Takeru-kun." Now that I remembered, I seriously needed some help from this fellow.

"May I ask you for a favour, Yoroi Sakon-san? I also own this pair of suit, you see. However, regrettably it is not in the best of conditions due to being stuffed with a small container." I was sure that this gent could help me get my suit back in shape.

"That is indeed unfortunate, Shirogane Takeru-kun. Why don't you bring it over and let's take a look."

"I will do just that." I swiftly fetched my clothes that I had kept in my closest.

"Ahh, I see. Don't worry Shirogane Takeru-kun. This isn't sometime a good ironing can't fix. I can introduce you to a decent suit tailor if you like. It will be costly, of course." Yoroi's old man was such a good citizen, willing to help out a man in need of a good outfit.

"I would really appropriate if you could do that, I would like to wear this beauty soon."

"Very well, here is their address." He passed me a piece of paper with the address of the tailor up in Tokyo, to think that tailors these days were still in business.

"So noisy in here. What've you been doing with my office?" Sensei flipped on the lights and accused us of improper activities.

"Yuuko-sensei. Welcome back." Sensei discontinued our pointless discussion about attires and the proper maintenance of it.

"Good evening, Professor Kouzuki." We both greeted her like the gentlemen that we were.

"…The Imperial Ministry of Information has no manners at all. I never gave you permission to… come to think of it, you never even asked for an appointment." Yuuko-sensei blamed Yoroi for breaking and entering, without the breaking part.

"Weeell, when I stood in front of the door, it just opened."

"You've got a clever answer for everything." Sensei was already upset with this man.

"To be fair, that is what happens when I stood there." I backed up Yoroi just for fun.

"Even Shirogane Takeru-kun knows what I'm talking about. Besides, if I stopped talking, I'd never get anything done…Wahaha…"

"Indeed… hahaha…" We were just having a good time. Without Yuuko-sensei.

"You two… Do you know this man, Shirogane?"

"I do, the Imperial Ministry of Information. Section Chief Yoroi Sakon-san." I answered truthfully.

"Ah, yes. I was introducing myself to him. I hope you're taking good care of my son, Shirogane Takeru-kun."

"I feel terrible for your son if that's the case. Your daughter, on the other hand, is doing just fine." I reminded Yoroi that he didn't have a son.

"Hahaha… sorry about that. I really wanted a son, a strong, muscular son… which is why—"

"—Okay, stop. So what are you really here for?" Yuuko-sensei cut him off when things were getting good.

"It's about the XG-70 deal… interested?" The impression was given off that we were clearly on much more serious topics now.

"Such a disgrace for the UN Army. They had to have a third party handle the negotiations between two member-nation's armies."

"America sees the UN as a nuisance, after all. They don't want to do anything more than act amicably." I allowed this conversation to flow on without interrupting it, since it really bored me. The arbitrary vision was that we still had problems since America wouldn't hand over their trash because we found values in them.

"…Then perhaps I should enlighten you on the ecology of the dodo bird…" Now that was a fascinating topic.

"No thank you."

"Dodos were originally…"

"Section Chief Yoroi!" Sensei again stopped the chap when it started getting interesting. Yuuko-sensei really got something against trivia.

"There's been unrest in a certain part of the Imperial Army… A study group has recently been formed to research military strategies… You know it won't just blow over, Professor Kouzuki. If they do something, there could be a political and military power vacuum in the Japanese government."

Yoroi brought up the upcoming rebellion to Yuuko-sensei, who was uncaring about anything other than Alternative IV. I will need to speak with sensei about this later, such a pain in the ass.

"…Yes, it's truly embarrassing. We can't prove who's behind it, but… They're the Imperial Defence and Internal Ministries, as well as a couple of shadows from the intelligence agency of that country which loves prioritizing its own interests…"

"…So, why are you really here? None of those are issues worth dragging your feet out here for." Yuuko-sensei cared not for Japan, only for Alternative IV.

"…Yesterday morning, a top priority order was given through improper channels. To the UN's North American Space Armada Command Center." The conversation moved onto the HSST incident when I was daydreaming.

"That, along with the suspicious behaviour in the Imperial Army… it's making everyone twitchy."

"Ohh, and your uninvolved Foreign Affairs Section Two is playing detective?" Sensei and Yoroi were just firing shots back and forth. Luckily, I was in the clear off to the side.

"—I wondered if you knew anything about it, Professor Kouzuki. So I thought I'd ask while I was here to give my report. It's not very peaceful over here… having to post guards around your own HSST." Yuuko-sensei said nothing, allowing Yoroi to continue.

"Not only that, but precise coordinates were sent out, with orders to monitor the UN HSST at that point. And to shoot it down if there were any signs of trouble… Aaah, how frightening."

"Someone made a rather dangerous order." I was sure that Yoroi knew Yuuko-sensei was behind everything, he just didn't know the exact reason and motive.

"…You say it like I'm involved somehow."

"…There aren't many people besides yourself, Professor Kouzuki… who could do such a thing." Yoroi couldn't find any evidence to prove his claims, and sensei wasn't going to give him any.

"That's enough of that. Even I can't predict everything." Sensei humbly rejected Yoroi's prosecution.

"…The favour of God or the power of the Devil… Have you gained control of either of them? At first, I suspected Yashiro Kasumi… Now there's a dead man walking right here… I would love to hear an explanation."

"And unfortunately, an explanation is what you are most unlikely to obtain, Yoroi Sakon-san. I recommend watching from a safe distance and do not allow yourself to be involved more than obligatory." I warned Yoroi about the possible consequences of sticking his neck where it didn't belong.

"Haha, How scary. Shirogane Takeru-kun, you truly are different from the norm." Yoroi was a man that could endanger my future plans. It was necessary to rally him under the same banner before he decides the opposite team would be more beneficial.

"Besides, can't you investigate this yourself without asking me? Isn't that your job?"

"Now that hurts… well then, maybe I'll do as you say and investigate it on my own!" Yoroi transferred his sight to me. For him, I was an irregular occurrence to an otherwise anticipated conclusion.

"—Anyway… Section Chief Yoroi will kindly leave now. Show him to the door please." Sensei eyed for me to guide him out.

"Such a shame… you really do seem to hate me. I'll take my leave now then." I stepped aside to escort him toward the door.

"Yoroi Sakon-san. Are you not going to see your daughter?" If possible, I wished for Mikoto to meet his old man before December 5. Lots of changes will occur on that destined day. Mikoto will most likely be detained for being this man's child.

"…That's right. I knew I forgot something. I came here on the premise of seeing how a certain special someone was doing."

"That doesn't matter to me, Yoroi Sakon. As Mikoto's friend, I ask of you, Mikoto's father. To pay her a visit before you completely disappear and return to your work. I'm sure she would appreciate that." I asked Yoroi, not as an agent for the government. But as the father to one of my most essential friend.

"Haha, I'm glad that you view my son this greatly, Shirogane Takeru-kun. Farewell, Let us meet again another time." With those as his words of departure, Yoroi Sakon left the office. Leaving only an Easter Island head souvenir in his wake.

"Yoroi Sakon, an interesting man indeed." I only mumbled a few words for myself to hear.

"Shirogane, please. Are you sure, you are not his son? The personality between the two of you is rather obvious." Yuuko-sensei couldn't help but admit to the similarities between me and Yoroi.

"Hehe, in some ways. I learned a lot from that man… I couldn't dismiss the fact that his ability to mislead others and make them spill secrets at his own leisure was not an unimpressive feat."

"You two… whatever, I don't even care about that anymore." Yuuko-sensei lost curiosity to Yoroi Sakon the minute he left, what an impatient genius.

"I got some news here, this one is big." I found that the time was right for me to inform sensei of the coup.

"What exciting event is coming up, Shirogane? It's about what Yoroi said, right? The Imperials are going to clash soon." Yuuko-sensei already foreseen what possible events could take place.

"On December 5, The Imperial Japanese Army's 1st Capital Defence Division that consist of the 1st Tactical Armor Regiment will attempt a Coup d'état instigated by Captain Sagiri Naoya of the same Regiment." I paused a bit, letting the shocking future sink in.

"The IJA's main division will turn against its country? They really got nothing to do these days." I ignored sensei's trivial comment to continue my story.

"They will attack Tokyo and kill most members of the Imperial Diet. Sagiri will execute the Prime Minister himself. After that, the will surround the Imperial Palace with the intent to capture the Shogun. The Imperial Royal Guards will strive to retake the capital with little success."

"Then every other IJA or MDF units out there will rally behind one of the two causes and a giant cluster fuck will take place. Fun days for everyone."

I stopped to think over the impending rebellion again, I can include as much detail as I remember this time. Yuuko-sensei wouldn't go against me during the coup, there was nothing for her to manipulate to her advantage.

"It's not unreasonable that the IJA would want to fight back against the Imperial government these days. The country is filled with foreign affairs." Yuuko-sensei understood quickly the source of this power struggle.

"Anyway, things escalated quickly during the night. A soldier in Kyoto started firing his infantry weapon towards the Royal Guards. As you can imagine, that is the equivalent to throwing a match into a barrel of gunpowder on a hot, summer day."

"So following that, both sides get super trigger happy and an all-out war breaks out all over the nation. The Royal Guards will get America's backup and Sagiri's forces will aim to capture the Shogun. Seeing the situation quickly falling out of favour, the provisional government at Sendai allowed UN and US forces to join the fun."

"The loyalist forces got even more pissed off that the government would bow its head to western power. However, us, the United Nation's armed forces, will intervene and fight back against the rebels, so will the Americans."

"Then the Americans aren't just moving around their assets for no reason then. They planned some of this, didn't they?" Yuuko-sensei's intellectual capabilities pretty much lets her see through everything. But it was my job to explain the happenings in detail.

"My squad, 207 training squad ends up getting send to defend Tougashima Fortress along with the Imperial Honor Guard's 19th Independent Guard Unit, so Tsukuyomi and her friends."

"For some reason only God knows. The Shogun, Koubuin Yuuhi escaped to Tougashima and we had the luck to meet up with her. We got assistance from US Army's 66th Tactical Armor Group. So we had enemies hot on our asses while we were running as fast as possible southward to the Shirahama coast. Where the UN Navy was waiting for us by Sagami bay."

"However, Sagiri used the 67 1st Airlift unit and dropped his guys right on top of us. The plan was to negotiate with Sagiri using Meiya as the double for the Shogun. But once again, shit went south when the CIA's agents… yeah, CIA's agents turned on us and fired to kill. In the aftermath, Sagiri was killed by Tsukuyomi and we got the Shogun to safety."

I broke down the coup in detail for Yuuko-sensei. She didn't even appear alarmed for anything I said.

"At the end of the day, the Americans had the whole thing planned as a method of removing the Imperial family and influencing the government with their own guys…" Guess Yuuko-sensei already understood the main points of this coup, I didn't know why I bothered to tell her.

"Yep, pretty much. They did fail and Japan got its government back."

"None of this affects us now that the 00 unit is completed. All we need is the XG-70 from the Americans. You know by now, what I plan to use to trade them for it right? My work here is just about done. This coup won't bring anything new to the table." Sensei criticized the future for not presenting anything that she required.

"Then I want you to listen to me. There are a few things that I wish to change."

"Sure, Shirogane. As much as I hate to acknowledge it. I do owe you a lot for everything you have done." Sensei agreed easily.

"The coup is mostly orchestrated by the CIA, who mostly supports Alternative V. They want to remove the Shogun from power and put in place a more controllable government. We can't allow that to happen, if the US got their hold on Japan, the people here after we wipe out the BETA will have to dance to America's tunes."

I knew what would happen if the coup goes the way they wanted. If Yuuhi wasn't so involved as the Shogun, I wouldn't have a problem with America taking over some parts of Japan.

"Then? What is your plan here?" Yuuko-sensei asked me for what I wished to change, but I couldn't reveal what I had yet to decide.

"When you deploy the A-01 task force. Just give them the option of retreat when needed. Normally going into this, they would have two more members than what they have now. Having someone die during a coup would just be foolish. Since their effort ended up being meaningless."

"What about the Prime Minister? Regrettably, I don't have the authority to evacuate members of the Imperial diet. Cadet Sakaki won't have much use if her reason for being here is gone." Yuuko-sensei noted another problem that I didn't have a solution to.

"I know that, I will find a way to save the Prime Minister, at least. Although they are all just pain in the ass for my future strategies. Cadet Sakaki would lose her value if her old man bites it." My reasons were that of a terrible human being, but that was fine with me.

"Alright, Shirogane. But I want to stress my point. If this country loses its head to the Alternative V people, everything goes down the drain. This could be their last chance to shut down Alternative IV, so they doubtlessly will do anything they can to stop us. You cannot let that happen, and you should know what happens more than anyone."

Yuuko-sensei presented me a warning as severe as they come. I will not let Alternative V come to pass. I just not yet know how to manipulate this incident to my gain.

 **Yoroi Sakon**

Sakon was standing in front his son's room. His daughter who was more like a son. He was told by Shirogane Takeru to pay his daughter a visit.

Sakon was a man who ever hesitates once in a blue moon. And right now, he couldn't make up his mind whether to visit his daughter or not. That choice was taken out of his hands when the door swung open, with Mikoto on the other side.

"EH…? Dad! What are you doing here?" Mikoto's face lit up with bliss, first time seeing her father since forever.

"Haha, I just came to see how you are doing, my son." Sakon was pulled into Mikoto's room after being told, again, that Mikoto was of the female gender.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **PX**

"Ooh, Shirogane. What are you doing at this hour?" My name was used by my future teammate, Kashiwagi Haruko.

"2nd Lt. Kashiwagi, I should thank you for not addressing me by my rank." I took notice of her once she sat down across from me.

"Haha, you do have your cover as a cadet. I'm not oblivious enough to not remember that." She reassured me the confidentiality of my secret was safe.

"I am just sitting here, envisioning the future." I felt no need to deceive her.

"How deep, you know we have an operation tomorrow, right? Shouldn't you be more prepared with that?" Haruko mentioned our stab adventure tomorrow which I wasn't too worried about. I had been down there a few times, almost nothing happened all of the times.

"I am fine about that. It won't be a fun mission anyway. It's something else that I'm troubled by."

"Why don't you tell me then, maybe I can help?" She kindly offered her mind to consider my problem with me.

"Say, if you have to remove a man from his most important job. How would you go about doing it?" I wasn't going to let Haruko in on confidential information that she doesn't need.

"Huh? Remove? You mean to kill him?" Haruko added a dark twist to my words.

"Jesus, no. Remove, as in actually getting him out."

"Hum… Is there anything more important to your target than his job? They say everyone has a weakness, right?" An imaginary light bulb brightened on the inside of my brain.

"Something more important… You are exactly right. Alright, thanks Kashiwagi. What you said should work."

"Haha, just happy to help, First Lieutenant." She didn't know how much trouble her judgment just saved me from facing.

"Before I go, there is going to be something big going down. Just watch out when it happens." I warned her about the impending coup that will claim many lives, didn't want her to be on that list.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Come on then, don't we have a mission tomorrow? Let's go back to our rooms." I terminated our little midnight meeting with those words.

 **November 30, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

Shake, shake. Shake, shake. My bed was so comfortable too… morning was such a disappointing time of the day.

"Takeru-chan! We got an operation today! Hurry and get up!" Sumika's energetic voice was ringing within my head like my alarm clock in the old world, which was also Sumika's energetic voice.

I finally woke myself up after half a minute. The temperature today was somewhat warmer than normal, so I changed into my uniform openly without ducking in the washroom.

"Awa… Takeru-chan…" Sumika looked as if she seen a ghost, a very handsome and muscular ghost at that.

"Come on, woman. Stop fantasizing and let's go!" I had to pull her long hair when she wouldn't respond. This girl was such a pain sometimes.

 **Hanger**

"That is the mission overview! We'll be deploying in thirty! Make any final adjustments you require to your frame and prepare for launch!" The final order before arrangement was issued.

"Captain, I need your approval." Kasumi politely delivered a PDA to Isumi.

"…Hum… Three sets of extra Mount Pylons. You're the gun sweeper so that's eight rifles in total. I never seen anyone carrying this much. It'll definitely slow down your movement speed. You sure about this, 2nd Lt. Yashiro?" A nod was all there was for a reply.

"Alright then, the Professor told me to approve your demands as long as they're reasonable. I'll get the head mechanic working on this."

"Thank you, Captain." Kasumi's exceedingly unusual style of combat was something to look forward to in our next engagement.

—

"Takeru-chan! Are you ready to go?"

"Pretty much, my unit is good for launch. How about you?"

"I'm good too! …This is going to our first real battle, huh." The small chat I held with Sumika just before deployment was of no importance.

"Don't worry, Sumika. Nothing will touch you if I'm here, I'll protect you all the time." I rubbed through her crimson hair to reassure her safety.

"…I'll be fine, Takeru-chan. Trust my skills that you helped me build all these years! I can pilot my robot just as well!"

"Yeah, I know… Take good care of yourself and Kasumi. I'll watch your back for you."

"And I will keep you safe too, Takeru-chan." A mutual connection was formed over our lips for a few, short seconds.

I hopped onto my Shiranui loaded with my definitive Strike vanguard set up. Two assault rifle, two swords and two knives allowed me to solve every problem on this planet. I used to run Storm Vanguard, but the shield ended up not killing enough hostiles.

Kasumi's type-94 was geared with the gun sweeper load out. She got a total of eight Assault Cannons just in case when two isn't enough.

Sumika was set to solo the role of the rush guard. She was equipped with a support assault cannon and two assault rifles. Once the team was ready for deployment, Captain gave the orders and we launched off from Yokohama Base air strip.

 **Gunma, Sadogashima Stab**

"—Valkyries 1 to Valkyries Mum. We have entered the stab, proceeding to investigate location."

"—Valkyries Mum. Copy that, report any situations and retreat if faced with overwhelming numbers of BETA."

We entered the Sadogashima Stab from its Gunma exit. The entryway itself was about thirty degrees downwards, very convenient for piloting our TSF through. The inside of the stab was about seventy meters tall, and the width was around the same length.

The walls and ground were all covered with hard bedrock. The BETA must had done a lot of digging if their tunnel could reach this far.

"—all units, formation Arrowhead 1. We'll surface at seventy percent speed. Report all findings and keep an eye out. Valkyries 1 out."

"—copy!" Our TSFs flowed above the ground and travelled inward to where the tunnel led to.

—

"—attention, all units. We are coming up on an intersection. We will divide into two groups and continue searching." The path ahead spitted into two after about fifteen minutes of boring piloting. Nothing was encountered and no shots were fired.

"—what are the teams, Captain? I call dibs on Shirogane." Hayase's relaxed character was brought on by this equally relaxing journey. None of the Valkyries were too uptight due to the fact that we didn't see any action.

"Let's see then… Shirogane, Hayase, Suzumiya, Kagami and Yashiro will be Alpha team. I will take Munakata, Kazama, Kashiwagi and Tsukiji to form the Bravo team. Hayase goes left and we will go right. Report any new discoveries." Even the Captain was getting a bit loosen up with this low pressure activity.

"—roger!" We all responded and went on our separate ways.

—

"—arghhhh, Shiroganeeeeee… This is so damn boring!" Hayase started to complain to me after an hour of travelling as a team of five.

"—shut up! I know! You think I'm having fun here driving this thing down pleasant lane? I want to shoot some BETA as well." I protested the lack of excitement with her. We really got nothing to do other than bitch about having nothing to do.

"—Takeru-chan, why don't you look around the scenery…? All these tunnels look so unique…" The 00 unit had officially crashed her system. Sumika was carefully observing her surrounding and finding entertainment in doing so.

"Sumika, don't even talk to me. And Kasumi, stop playing cat's cradle and focus! If you concentrate hard enough, maybe you can see shadows of the BETA that used to be here." I had no idea what we were blabbering about at that point.

" _Takeru-san is playing his Gameguy._ " Kasumi had the decency to not broadcast my gaming over the public channel. An act that I was very grateful for.

"Alright! All units forward charge! I will race you for two klicks, Shirogane!"

"—1st Lt. Hayase! Please stop acting so freely! We are still on a mission!" Akane was tight and upright with her own behaviour. It was impressive that she didn't fall asleep from our trip.

"It's fine, it's fine. Not like we are going to run into any BETA anyways, what do you say, Shirogane?"

"Piss off, Hayase! Stop trying to break formation for your own leisure!" I brutally shut down Hayase's invitation for a race. I was getting to a boss fight in my game soon, can't let her distract me.

—

"—Valkyries Mum to all units. Report your stats." Suzumiya requested us to give another update at the three hours mark. We were making good progress despite all the protests about the inactivity. Our unit had regroup couple of times when the tunnels connected and separated again when they diverged.

"—this is Valkyries 1 to Valkyries Mum. Nothing to report."

"—Valkyries 2 to Valkyries Mum. Nothing to report."

"—Valkyries 3 here. We also got nothing to report."

"—this is Specter 1 to Valkyries Mum. Nothing to report."

"This is Valkyries Mum. All copy. The current scan percent of the Sadogashima stab is at eighty-one. Continue to investigate all accessible tunnel entrances." We had been searching around these tunnels for a hundred and eighty minutes now. This whole place was all empty except for the rocks that formed this very subway.

The Sadogashima stab extends way longer than I initially thought, with passages reaching all the way to Nagano and Matsumoto area. This was extremely abnormal for only a phase four hive.

Sadogashima had a stab reaching around fifteen times its supposed length. This crazy distance allowed the BETA from Sadogashima to attack Japan any days of the week the pleased. It was a miracle that they never got down to using it for anything else other than assaulting Yokohama. If we don't seal these entrances that will be the same as handing over Yokohama Base on a silver platter.

—

Another half an hour passed before the comms showed Captain's face.

"—Valkyries 1 to all units, another crossing coming up. We will gather at this one and turn back. We are currently under the ocean right now and going any further would be too dangerous."

Captain didn't want to advance beyond what was necessary. The possibility of us running into some BETA sky-rockets if we enter the drift of the actual hive. With which, our chances of survival decreases dramatically.

"—this is Specter 1. We have reached the rendezvous point." My team was the first to enter the intersection. A few seconds later, Captain's team entered from a tunnel to our left and Hayase's group appeared off to the right.

"—Valkyries Mum to all units. You are currently two hundred meters below the ocean floor. Your distance to the Sadogashima hive is thirty kilometers. It had been determined any further exploration will be too dangerous for this operation. You're ordered to finish marking any undiscovered points and make your way back to Gunma."

Captain's deduction was right on the money. The higher ups didn't want us to go any further than this.

"—you heard her, people. We will turn around and return to Gunma now."

"—roger!" We rotated our TSF around and went into the tunnel that Captain's team came from, which was the shortest pathway back.

"—Captain, wait… That is another entrance to our right." Munakata brought the attention of the squad to an entering on the right wall. The hole was only about twenty degrees from our path. It was no wonder the Captain missed it during her passing.

"Oh, you're right. Alright, all units let's go in and take a look." Captain instructed for us to search what led beyond this cave.

It would be more accurate to call this place a hall than a cavern. The ceiling was unnaturally high and the room was much bigger than any of the earlier locations found. The floor that we stood on was all shining and lid up for unknown reasons.

"—what is this place? It's just a dead end."

"—this area is giving me the creeps. There is nothing around here… Can we just go?" Akane and Tsukiji shared their dislike of our location. Their sentiments were mutual with the rest of the team.

"Wait… That thing up there… Is that a pillar? Captain, can you see it?" Hayase detected some unnatural structures high above the hall.

"—yeah, I see it too. There is some sort of column, going from the floor. Lots of them too." Kashiwagi also discovered this abnormality.

"That… Could it be…?" Captain Isumi confirmed her speculation when she zoomed in on the poles that stood tall inside the cave.

"Aw, holy crap… those are… Brains, aren't they?"

"Yeah… doesn't look like anything else to me…" The devastating finding was made clear when we all increased the detection distance of our sensor. I was also too bewildered and allowed the moment of realization to sink in without taking any precautions.

"Oh, god… That's just like what our repor— Hey! Specter 2, your readings are off the charts. You doing okay? I know this is somewhat shocking, but yo—"

"—it's not me…! I didn't want it…! TAKERU-CHAN! IT'S NOT MY FAULT!" The moment Sumika comprehended what she was seeing, her heart rate flourished rapidly and her brain waves destabilized within seconds.

"—hey! Sumika! Calm yourself!" I rushed over to her TSF, hoping my presence would somehow bring her back to reality.

"NO, NO, no! STAY AWAY…! It's not me! I didn't do anything wrong…!" Sumika shoved me away and fired her slugs wildly without any target.

"Specter 2! 2nd Lt. Kagami! Snap out of it!" The rest of the squad pulled away from Sumika's TSF. Her bullets spread everywhere without a target while her screams rang within our comms nonstop.

"Sumika-san! Please stop it!"

"Sumika! Stop it!" We could only shout her names to no avail.

"Valkyries Mum to all units! Report your stats!"

"Arghh…! Captain, she's going to attract any BETA around here if we don't stop her!" It wasn't difficult for Hayase to put two and two together.

"Damn it, she is suffering from a psychotic episode! I'm gonna to have to hit her with the hypnotic program!"

"Captain, No! You can't inject her with th—" My warnings were just a fraction of a second too late.

"O soldiers under the rain of blood, the black mist, the night rainbow, O soldiers whose souls are guided by the white water's surface, the drops of the moon…"

The suggestive Hypnosis's lyrics resonated within my TSF, it brought agonizing pain to my head. The 00 unit had a passive defence system against all mental attacks and hypnosis. It blocked out all signals from reaching her brain and she must have hacked our system as a rebound.

"…Arghh! Wha— Why is the phrases playi— AAga!" The team also received the hypnotic trigger. But the frequency of the waves was different from their regular counterpart. It only served to ache and strain our mental capabilities.

" _Takeru-san! Please stop Sumika-san fast! I don't know how long I can protect you from the hypnosis."_ I was cleared from the mental attacks thanks to the effort of Kasumi. The rest of the squad was also in distress due to the program.

"Arraagha! IT'S NOT ME! I didn't want to feel this way!" Sumika was suffering from something like a nervous breakdown. She wouldn't listen to our words and continued to fire her weapon aimlessly.

" _Kasumi! Help me stable her frame!_ " I piloted my Shiranui to Sumika's front. Kasumi assisted me by grabbing Sumika's unit from behind. I hopped out of my TSF and manually opened her cockpit from the outside.

"Sumika! Sumika! It's okay now! You're fine! You're okay…!" The Sumika that I saw wasn't the cheerful and happy girl that I came to know.

Her pretty face was dirtied by her tears and saliva, with her hair brushed into a mess and scratches over her forehead inflicted by her own nails.

"NO! NO! I didn't do it…! I didn't want to betray Takeru-chan! The BETA… they did this to me! It's not my fault…!" Sumika's memories of the past resurfaced, her time spent alone in the hive. A time that we never remembered until now.

"SUMIKA! You did nothing wrong! I'm right here with you! I will always be by your side! So, just… Just stop it, alright?!" I pulled her out of the seat and embraced her.

Holding her tight against my chest, I patted her back and rubbed her head like the first few times when she had the same reaction. I was too dependent on Sumika this time around, but that was fine too. I knew I will never leave her side. I will always be there to comfort her when the bad times arrive.

"Takeru-chan…! Takeru-chan!" She finally came to her senses and returned my affection. The hypnosis stopped for the members of the A-01. Everyone regained their footing and the situation started to return to normal.

"This is… This is Valkyries 1… All units report your conditions." Captain Isumi was the first to recover and demanded the others to do the same.

"Valkyries 2 here, I think I'm fine… my head hurts like a bitch though."

"This is Valkyries 3. I should be good. In another seven years… I am still functional." The rest of the squad quickly followed suit and improved their circumstances.

"Shirogane. How is Kagami…? She back to normal…?"

"She's unconscious right now… I'll put her Shiranui on Slave Mode." I laid Sumika nicely within her cockpit and activated the remote control function.

"…What the hell just happened!? Our OS got corrupted within not even a second of the hypnotic program going off!" Munakata let her irritation known to others.

"I don't know, our system just got—" Kazama was interrupted rudely by the alarm within our unit. A warming sign of Code 991 appeared over our screens.

"Code 991! We got incoming BETA forces! They're advancing our way from the tunnels!"

"Valkyries 1 to all units! Circle 1 around Specter 2 and sta— what…!" Captain Isumi's attempt to mobilize herself ended in failure.

"My frame! It's not responding!"

"Mine's down too…! What is happening here…?"

"I'm no good! The system is up but I can't move this!" All other members reported the same situation.

"This is Specter 3. I'm fully functional." Kasumi adjusted her unit and released Sumika's. I hopped back into my Type-94 to discover it also operational. Kasumi must had covered the duo of us with her ability from Sumika's hacking.

"Specter 1 here. All green. I'll cover the team while you guys go for a hard restart!"

"Wait, Shirogane! We don't even know what's wrong with the system yet—"

"That's why you should reboot it! Hurry! We don't have any time here!" The system collapse was most likely caused by Sumika. When she fainted, it must had forcefully disconnected the signal from their fighters. This happened a couple of times in the past so I had some ideas to the culprit.

"What you waiting for! Hurry up and restart!" Captain shouted for the team to start up the OS again.

"Specter 1, Specter 2. Moving to engage all tangos." Kasumi and I maneuvered our frames out of the dead end to face the BETA hordes.

"…Valkyries 1, copy. Just hold on long enough for us to come back!"

—

"—you ready, Kasumi? This is the first time, you know?"

"—I'm okay, Takeru-san." We waited for the enemy vanguard to enter the intersection where we decided to turn back. Some BETA crawled out of the tunnel ahead and charged for us without care.

"Mount Pylon full extension… acquiring all targets…" The mechanical arms behind Kasumi stretched to their entire length. Each holding onto an assault rifle loaded with different rounds. Forming a wing-like silhouette for her unit.

"All targets locked. Firing for effect."

Halls of bullets soared across the empty air, each heading towards their own prey that Kasumi selected beforehand.

It was an absolute coverage with eight machine guns that left no room for anything to survive. Kasumi discovered her preferred fighting style, which was mid-range bombardment with maximum kill potential.

Herself moved only when desirable so she can get a better angle to increase the Casualty rate of the enemy force.

"Alright! I'll take any Tank-class that's immune to your shots."

I drew my own blade in one arm and held the rifle in the other. The approaching Tank-class BETAs were quickly dispatched without mercy. My movements were also smooth and rapid to the extreme.

Swift jumps and short boosts paired with the Move Cancel of the XM3 allowed me to navigate around the combat zone, cutting and shooting down anything that posed a threat to myself or the friendlies behind.

—

"—you're kidding me with this, right?"

"—this guy really has the skills to back up his boasts… You got to step up your game, Hayase." Munakata and Hayase shared their opinion of me after their Shiranuis were back among the living.

"—and all of you just stood right there and watched the show. I hope you at least paid the entry fee."

"—1st Lt. Shirogane and 2nd Lt. Yashiro, you just cleared a Battalion of BETA within two minutes. Normally you deserve some serious compliments, but we can't afford the time. All units! Wedge-1 with Specter flight in the center! Shirogane, you'll takeover control for Kagami's frame. We're boosting at full speed away from here!"

"—roger that!"

—

We were permitted exit without further retaliation from the BETA. After we made it back to safety, the demolition team took over and ventured down into the stab to close it off completely.

 **Author's note**

This is kind of a weird chapter. I normally stop when the date changes but that would be too long of a chapter so I cut it here. The Coup would probably be the next, next chapter and still needs a lot of polishing for it to be good. I'm a bit stuck on some ideas but hopefully no major setback. Thank you all for reading and please review and stuff.

So yeah weekly update is more likely for my case. I could just throw out some chapters but I like to follow a non-existent timetable.

Proofreading was done by chad001, shout out to my buddy as always.


	9. Those that have worth

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **November 30**

 **Hanger**

"Sumika, watch your steps here." I helped Sumika with descending her TSF.

Her body was still a little weak from the incident that took place earlier. I guided Sumika to Yuuko-sensei's lab, sensei speedily led her into a medical room to test if the breakdown could have caused any long lasting effects on the 00 unit's performance.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"How is she, sensei?"

"Hm… let's see here. The 00 unit's mentally destabilized reaction was due to her emulation of Kagami Sumika's past experience. A certain event in the real Kagami's past triggered the 00 unit's reaction that she displayed today when she saw whatever that was contained in Kagami's memory.

Some highly technical words were used by Yuuko-sensei which almost confused me to no end.

"I know that. I'm asking you if Sumika will be fine from now on." I wasn't interested in the reason that caused Sumika's relapse, I sought to know her condition from here on out.

"I can't stop her mental disruptions, Shirogane. That is your job. However, there was no long lasting damage that could be perceived during her testing, so I will conclude by saying that being traumatized won't affect her capabilities."

"You say it like she is some kind of a tool, sensei. Is that how you should treat the hope of mankind?" I was dissatisfied by Yuuko-sensei attitude towards Sumika. It was an unreasonable tantrum on my part.

"Again, taking care of the 00 unit as a person is your job, Shirogane. I see her as an instrument for saving this world." Sensei's counterargument was just as I expected. It was no fault of sensei that she didn't view Sumika as a living person, Sumika died long ago, after all.

"Professor Kouzuki, excuse me."

The doors swung open to reveal Captain Isumi who just interrupted our conversation, a deed she rarely participates in. We saluted each other as military protocol demanded. Surprisingly, she didn't salute Yuuko-sensei.

"Captain Isumi, what brought you here today?" Yuuko-sensei didn't forget to paste on her usual smirk.

"Professor Kouzuki, did you read my report for today's operation?"

"Yes, a job well done, by the way. Must be boring having to drive through five hours of BETA stab only to face off against half a Battalion. Although it's a good thing they let your team go without a big fight. Kind of an anticlimactic ending if you ask me." Yuuko-sensei casually answered, knowing Isumi's main point wasn't that.

"Professor, I'm not here for that. 2nd Lt. Kagami displayed some very unique abilities today and I wish to consult you about her. And if she will partake in future operations." The concern from Isumi was very direct, rightfully so. Thanks to Sumika's episode today.

"Captain, you do not need to know most matters with 2nd Lt. Kagami. She is related to Alternative IV and the most important contributor of said project. I'll not assign her on any mission together with A-01 if 1st Lt. Shirogane here doesn't join himself." Yuuko-sensei reassured the safety of Isumi's subordinates

"But Professor! What she did down there today was clearly abnormal! She hacked our TSF and forced the hypnotic program to pla—"

"Enough, Captain. It's not like you to ask for classified information after being denied them." Yuuko-sensei was getting annoyed by Capt. Isumi's stubbornness.

"Yuuko-sensei, I don't see what's wrong with telling Capt. Isumi the truth. Isn't the A-01 Task force formed for the purpose of carrying out Alternative IV?" Letting Isumi know a little about the 00 unit wouldn't hurt the project in the long run.

"Ahah… you just want to brag about your super powered girlfriend, Shirogane? Fine, fine. I will give you some intel on her." Sensei rather easily accepted my request, it made no sense as to why she disagreed the first time.

"Kagami is my key to the completion of Alternative IV. I can't give you anymore details about the project itself, for now. But Kagami is esper with the abilities to perceive the thoughts of other, project images and ideas to others and can hack any computer system that she wishes. You happy now, Captain?"

"Huh? Eh…? Alright then." Capt. Isumi was shocked by how Yuuko-sensei dished out classified secrets like how she would throw away yesterday's leftover lunch.

"Just leave, Captain. I have nothing else to tell you."

"Ah… yes, Ma'am." My first time seeing the Captain lose her cool was a long time ago, it felt refreshing to witness it again as Isumi hastily left the office.

"Yuuko-sensei… you okay? If you are stuck on a formula or something, just ask me and I will help you."

"Just get out, Shirogane. The 00 unit is probably awake right now so you can go visit her. I got my own problems to solve here." Sensei was trying to boot me from her office. I wasn't going to stay and find out the reason behind her frustration.

 **Yokohama Base, Kagami's room**

"Yo, Kasumi." I patted Kasumi's head, which of whom was tending to Sumika.

"Hello, Takeru-san."

"Ah, Takeru-chan! Awawa… wait! Don't come any closer!" I ignored her plea and sat down on her bed instead of backing off. Her face flushed bright red like a Christmas tree… that only has one color of decorations.

"What are you panicking about? It's just a bed, I didn't sit on anything." It was quite clear the motivation of her fluster, but teasing Sumika wouldn't hurt anyone.

"Takeru-chan! I'm not wearing anything under this sheet!" Hehe, the idiot gave it away so effortlessly.

"Then this shall be the perfect time!" I reached down and groped her breast. The sensation that I felt with my fingers will never get old. Some of the UN markings covering her body were exposed when her sheet flapped around, fortunately that didn't matter anymore for me.

"Ahh… Takeru-chan…" Her face blushed even redder due to my skillful hand movement.

"Sumika, be patient. I have yet to finish your body inspection." I proceeded to rub all over her figure while Kasumi just silently watched, creepily.

"Aaaa, Kasumi-chan… help…"

"Takeru-san, stop. Takeru-san is a pervert." I disregarded Kasumi's deadpan accusation and resumed playing with Sumika. She was only pretending to dislike my fiddling.

"Mnnn… Takeru-chan… don't… stop…" I ceased my hand movement the second Sumika started to enjoy it.

"Alright, your inspection is finished. I will be on my way."

"Eh? But I'm still—" I wrapped things up and was prepared to leave her hanging. However, Sumika took hold of my sleeve before I could exit.

"Takeru-chan… do you… do you want to spend the night…?"

"What if I say no?" I had no plan to stay up late for tonight.

"Awwwa… are you going to leave me…? I… I want you to stay here…!" As a man, I couldn't refuse a cute, embarrassed girl's invitation. I also didn't want to crush Sumika's self-esteem, if she had any.

"Nah, got nothing to do tomorrow, I'll stay with you. Kasumi, what about you?" I didn't want to just leave Kasumi behind. Sumika looked over and asked the same question with her eyes.

"I'll join you two as well." Kasumi increased the difficulty from a 2p to a 3p. Good thing I also had many practice with the amplified number too.

"Alright, let me go back and get my clothes for tomorrow."

 **December 01, 2001**

 **Kagami's room**

The earliest morning arrived for me since I arrived here. I knew that there wouldn't be anyone rattling me this time. Quickly removing two arms that linked together and locked my chest down. I pulled my uniform from the side of the bed.

"…Muumm… Takeru-chan? Where are you…?" Sumika rubbed her eyelids, turned upwards to face me. I kneeled by her head and pecked her smooth cheek.

"Good morning, Sumika." She received a rare, gentle smile.

"Morning, Takeru-chan." Sumika expressed her own joy by reaching out and kissing my forehead.

"Come on now, get up and let's go." I urged Sumika to prepare herself for today's activities.

"Takeru-chan, can I ask you something?"

"Huh? Yeah, sure." It suddenly felt very difficult to breath in our room. It didn't take a genius to figure out Sumika's topic.

"Do you… do you think it's my fault? What happened there, I didn't want it… but I just couldn't stop myself…!"

There was no confidence I got the answer that Sumika will be content with. We never talked about what had happened to her before I came to this world. It wasn't a time worth remembering.

"Sumika, do you love me?" I threw question from out of left field.

"Aah…! Takeru-chan… I do. I do love you." Sumika answered honestly despite being ruffled at first.

"Will you always be loyal to me, from now on?" There was no hidden meaning behind those questions. I also required my own answer.

"Yes, I will."

"And through all these times, you only had your eyes for me?"

"Of course! Takeru-chan is the only one I will ever love!" She got defensive when I suggested the presence of another person. Sumika was truly faithful to me and me alone.

"Ahaa, this makes things kind of awkward… I will tell you the truth, Sumika. I love you with all my heart. But I can't love only you. I have feelings for the others in our squad too. They were all with me during the hard times and the difficult past, just as you had. I'm not strong enough to keep myself only for you."

I confessed my feelings for the other girls. It would be pointless anyway for me to hide it.

"Takeru-chan… but do you love me?" There was no anger in her voice when I plead guilty.

"I will love you forever, Sumika. Even if you can't accept me for who I become. I will still love you without fail. That, is the only thing that I can promise you." It was natural for Sumika to reject me. I thought about the consequence of my actions for a long time, but I believed that Sumika should be granted the right to know.

"If you love me, then I don't care about the others… I can't blame you for anything. It's all my fault from the beginning, anyhow." Sumika took my head and held it to her heart. I could hear her heartbeats, the evidence of life in the chest of my loved one.

"You are really strong, Sumika. Stronger than I will ever be. Are you sure you can tolerate me for not be faithful to you?" There was be no choice for her to regret this after.

"I understand that Takeru-chan will need more people to support him. After all, he will be the one to save humanity, right? I don't mind sharing Takeru-chan with others who I know care and love him just as much."

"Besides, everything… you suffered so much because my own jealously. If only I wasn't this selfish… Takeru-chan wouldn't need to be in so much pain…"

"Sumika… thank you. But there is one thing I need to correct you on. You are the reason I was given this chance, this opportunity to save everything. Know that you did nothing wrong."

I hugged her back, the moments that I had engraved in my memories resurfaced. My entire life was dedicated for the sole purpose of rescuing these girls that used theirs to protect me.

"Takeru-chan… Takeru-chan!" Sumika's tears floated down her lovely face. My name was called over and over again, as her arms wrapped around me.

The time in the old world, when I was forced to pick between Meiya and Sumika under the tree. That painful decision was only intensified when I saw the end of another path.

But then I got swallowed by this world's chaos and couldn't be of any assistance to my squad. I was weak back then, I am still weak even now. But this time, this time with the help of all my friends, I will not fail to protect anyone again.

—

"Oh yeah, one more thing. Come with me to my room."

"Huh? Okay!" I got off the floor and waited outside for her to put on her clothes before we both departed for my compartment.

"You sure Kasumi-chan will be fine? We just left her there."

"Yup, this will only take a minute. Besides, Kasumi is a big girl now. She was even more active than you were last night." I irritated Sumika by bringing up our lively times yesterday.

A little red could be observed on her face. Still, just the having the knowledge that she also has the same knowledge was enough for me to stop the trolling, for a little while.

"Here, this is my gift to you, for winning the mock battle." I searched the inside of my drawer and carefully pulled out the reward that I arranged.

"Aww… Takeru-chan… this is so cute!" It really wasn't as pretty as Sumika was exaggerating it to be.

The item in question was a hairband with a giant rabbit toy attached on top. I find it ridiculous how big this bunny was, the thing was around the size of my fist. Very impressive that the architect of this accessory could even get it to stick.

"Put it on, Sumika. I want to see exactly how dumb it would make you look."

"Mou, Takeru-chan! But thank you for getting me this." Sumika equipped the rabbit hairband quickly to display its cuteness. It looked absurd, like some alien bunny creature was using her hair as a nest. She was very fond of the item so I kept my mouth shut.

—

Shake, shake. Shake, shake. Kasumi was hard-set on waking me up every day, even if I was already awake.

"Kasumi, I understand your desire to wake me every morning. But I need you to comprehend the fact that when I'm already awake, you can't wake me up." The shaking stopped and Kasumi's shadow went to sit in a corner like I was punishing her.

"Did you see the rabbit on Sumika's head?"

"Yes." There was no choice but to divert the subject.

"What did you think of it?"

"It's cute." Even Kasumi gave her approval of the add-on. I couldn't disagree with the majority. But I did have a different rabbit prepared for Kasumi as well.

"Here, Kasumi. Look at this." I held a giant rabbit toy in my arms that I pulled from my closet.

The bunny was only about five centimeter shorter than Kasumi herself. It had grey fur and white polka dots covering it from head to toe. Just like Kasumi's Usa-san, this toy also had strange razor-like teeth on its over-sized head. I placed an eye-patch over its left eye for added fashion while also donning it in a set of handmade suit that I crafted days ago.

"Is this for me?" Her expression lit up with passion and reached out to receive it. The methods she attempted to carry it was hilarious, she ended up having to give it a piggy back ride due to the size of my present.

"Do you like this, Kasumi?"

"Yes. Thank you, Takeru-san." Her gratitude was all I sought in return.

 **PX**

"Aha, Takeru-chan! Welcome back!" After carefully laying her rabbit into her room with my help. I came to the café with Kasumi to retrieving our daily meal.

"Takeru, you and your escorts did not attend training yesterday. Furthermore, you did not return to your room as well. Is this something that we can ask about?" By some means, Meiya brought up three sensitive topics in merely two sentences.

"Meiya, no! None of those things can be discussed. And who said that these two are my escorts?" Sumika blushed pink red yet again. Kasumi was perhaps also somewhat embarrassed. Possibly?

"Takeru, calm down. Mitsurugi only asked you a question. No need for your overreaction." Class rep was calling me out for retorting.

"That's what the Professor called Kasumi-san and Sumika-san yesterday. She said that both of them are your escorts, or guards." Tama naively answered my question, not realizing the meanings behind those words.

"Who else other than Yuuko-sensei… well no matter, what is going on here then?" I forwarded the topic away before somebody picks up anything funny.

"We were just talking about Sumika-san's new hairband! It's so cute, Takeru has a great eye for these sorts of things!"

"Indeed, it's a very nice addition to Sumika's looks." Some facts I noticed while I was away, everyone started to call Sumika by her forename as well. It was a good change, working to bring the squad closer together.

"That reminded me, I prepared gifts for all of you here. Think of it as a reward for your performances during the mock battle." Everyone showed a tremendous interest for what I had in store.

"Takeru… so considerate."

"Takeru-san is so nice these days!" Ayamine and Tama both cheered for gifts.

—

"Alright then, Christmas is coming early this year for all of you. First is Tama." I reached for my duffel bag that I fetched from my room. It contained all the stuff that Yuuko-sensei delivered to me some days ago.

"First up is Tama. I know that you are inspired to join the cat family one day, so I got this for you. Look! It's a cat bell and cat tail combo!"

"Ahaha… Takeru-san… Thank you…?" Tama was not yet ready to receive such gifts of high quality. But my generosity knows no bounds.

"But wait… there's more! I also got you this book on flower keeping! This book here is very detailed on the best way to grow and care for plants and flowers. Hopefully it will be to your assistance." The smile on Tama's face wasn't a fake, forced one like earlier. She was genuinely pleased with my present.

"Awwwwa, Thank you Takeru-san! Did you know I had a Saintpaulia in my room?"

"Yes I did. That's purpose behind that book." The outburst of joy only deepened for our cat girl.

"I promise to take good care of this book and my flowers!"

"That's nice, Tama. Don't forget to wear the tails and ears as well, alright?" I reminded her to equip the gears she always wore in the old world.

"Next is Mikoto. Did your dad visit you recently?" I wished to know if Yoroi Sakon actually cared for his daughter.

"Ehh? How did you know? He just visited me two days ago, he brought me a lot of random things from his travels too!" I was grateful that Yoroi didn't leave the base without a word. The man still held his dignity as a father.

"Just a guess. But more importantly. Here, Mikoto. A Swiss Army knife that was manufactured by specialities in America. This is dedicated for soldiers, go ahead and play around with it." I tossed Mikoto the multi-tool which she caught without an issue.

"Wow, Takeru! I always wanted a pocket knife like this! Thank you! How did you know that I wanted one?" It was complete luck that Mikoto was happy with my gift.

"How would I know? Just a fluke. Anyway, next is Ayamine… here… yakisoba tickets. You hand me back one ticket and I provide you with a meal worth of Yakisoba, at any time."

I passed her some tickets for her favourite food. Yuuko-sensei actually put in an order for Yakisoba to always be in stock. Kyozuka-oba-chan deserves a raise for all the extra hours that she has to serve.

"Takeru, isn't this a little cheap for a gift? I mean, I know Ayamine likes Yakisoba and all. But thi—" Class rep's sentence was interpreted when Ayamine very literally pushed my down.

"Takeru… I love you." Her confession was followed by a kiss that I didn't stop her from conveying.

"I'm satisfied to hear that. You want to get up now?" Ayamine released me and I was greeted with murderous intents from all females in my immediate vicinity. With the exception of the one who caused their frustration.

"Takeru… you truly are an indecent man."

"Mou, Takeru-chan! How could you do that?!"

"Takeru, you have no shame, don't you?"

"Takeru-san, pervert."

"T-Takeru-san! That was really inappropriate!"

"Guys… didn't Ayamine start that?" I heard Mikoto's voice that was different from the mainstream belief. Lucklessly her voice was drowned out by the public, a truly frightening world we lived in.

"That was fun, all of you just calm down. Moving on is Class rep. I need your glasses, don't worry, it won't turn into a joke this time."

"You promise, Takeru? Just don't break these, alright?" she unenthusiastically handed them over. I simply took a rough estimate of the degrees her lenses provided before taking out a different pair of glasses.

"Try these on, Class rep. I'm confident that they will feel better." Class rep hesitantly donned the new glasses.

They had a square frame with the empty rim on the bottom and transparent temple by the side. Chizuru had a refreshing look to her once she put on the frames. I wasn't the only one with that opinion as everyone else nodded in agreement.

She looked more like a modern lady instead of looking like a circuit clown with two giant circles in place of a red nose.

"This… this is amazing, Takeru. I never dreamed it would be this clear! Thank you for giving me these…"

The glasses were specifically ordered from an American company that designed combat frames. It was bloody expensive too, good thing I swam in money these days thanks to the military fund. Yuuko-sensei and her infinite backing were the best a man could dream for.

"Just take good care of those. Another thing, I'll be in possession of your old pair, okay? I need them for something else."

"Huh? Sure, but… what do you need them for?" I had already put away Class rep's old glasses when she questioned my intentions.

"Don't worry about it, I need them for something important." Class rep shrugged her shoulders and went back to viewing things in high definition.

"And finally is Meiya… you know what. I will personally deliver yours, right now isn't the best time." Meiya concealed her discontent with having to wait for her gift without issue. Her strong personality doesn't allow any complaints to be voiced.

"If you find that to be the best course of action, Takeru. Then I can't stop you."

—

We sat around and chitchatted for an unknown period of time under lunch was ready to be served.

"Takeru-chan! Open wide!"

"Here you go." Both of my guards attempted to feed me at the same time, followed up by one chop each to their noggins.

"Agaaaa."

"Owieee!"

"Are you two serious? How am I supposed to eat from two different chopsticks at once? Is my mouth made of rubber or something? Are the two of you just going to pull open my jaw?" I criticized their lack of logic.

"Wait… wait! Is this normal?" Class rep was the first to take note of the abnormality taking place in front of her.

"…I apologize for interrupting your oh-so-enjoyable meal… but I would like to know why they are doing that."

"Kasumi-san and Sumika-san are both feeding Takeru-san… at the same time!"

"Why's this happening? Why are they feeding you?"

"This is… complicated." The rest of the squad all hopped aboard the confusion train and demanded reasons at the same time. As always, the anger was solely focused on me and me alone.

"Stop targeting me! Ask the people producing the act, not the one accepting it!" I didn't want to be on the receiving end of their wrath for the seven thousandth time.

"Sumika! Why are you feeding him?! Kasumi too!" Inquiry about the reason to my feeding was started by Class rep.

"Huh? Takeru-chan would need to eat too, right?"

"Takeru-san should eat lunch." My two friends didn't discover anything wrong with their cause.

"But why are you two the ones feeding him! Takeru is mature enough to eat without assistance from others!" A certain samurai was becoming more and more annoyed.

"Takeru-chan, do you mind?"

"Is it okay?" Sumika and Kasumi diverted their attention to me, seeking my consent.

"Yeah, sure. Just feed me one at a time and we won't have any problems." I was past the phase where I get uncomfortable with being fed openly. It's not like the other girls can do anything about this.

"Yaay! Open up, Takeru-chan!" I cooperated and ate a piece of fish. It tasted nothing special.

"Here, Takeru-san." Another piece of seafood was carried to my mouth.

"Takeru-san! Getting fed isn't good for you! You'll… you'll get too lazy and die!" Tama was worried for my life, but I couldn't give her many points for the subject of her concern.

"Takeru-chan is fine! If you want to, everyone can feed him as well!"

"It's okay." Sumika suggested a very terrible idea and Kasumi seconded it.

"Very… very well then! Here, Takeru! You shall eat this as well!"

"I'm not feeding you because I want to or anything like that okay? It's just that you should eat some vegetables too!"

"Takeru-san, say a-aah."

"Takeru, eat this too!"

"Here you go…" I ended up being stuffed with ration twice my normal meal size. Luckily, I didn't eat anything for breakfast before lunch, or gaining a few grams would be inevitable.

 **Hanger**

"Class rep, pass the torque wrench." A torque wrench was then sent flying to my forehead. But my superhuman reaction speed let me snag it before a concussion was created.

"Ah, sorry Takeru. My hand slipped. Good job catching the wrench though." I made a mental note to slip my hands somewhere inside Class rep's clothes sometime soon.

"Takeru… shall I get you a socket wrench?" Meiya then flung the said wrench toward my face. Fortunately, I also caught that with my other hand.

"Do you need… a ratchet?" The ratchet fired by Ayamine was stopped before it made contact with a very important body part.

"What about a screwdriver? Or pliers?" Those two items were intercepted along with the rest of the potential lethal weapons.

"Mikoto! That's cheating! One tool per person, like we silently agreed!" I tossed the pliers to Tama and she caught it by surprise, the reaction speed she displayed was very wonderful.

"I don't even want to know why all of you are so angry at me… didn't you all got to feed me? Shouldn't everyone be happy?" The team blushed in unison.

"That… that is not the problem!" Meiya's counterargument was met with agreement from the others.

"I don't… I can't even… ahha. Whatever."

"Takeru-chan, catch!" Sumika also chucked a hammer my way. I stopped my instinct of pitching it right back seizing it. Her round, dumb face was just too tempting of a target.

"Alright, alright. Gather around and throw those one at a time, okay? I show you all something cool." Our maintenance training concluded with me juggling seven different repair tools at once. That was followed by dinner when everybody tried to force food down my throat at the same time yet again.

 **Yokohama Base post office**

"Hello sir, how may I help you?" A civilian worker greeted me by the post office.

"Hi, I would like to deliver this document to a William Parker alongside this package." I showed her a classified order record that stated my real rank and delivery information. William Parker was just a name used to inform the classified nature of the case.

"I see… I understand sir. The package will be transported on date. That will be two thousand Yen." I paid the price willingly. It was super cheap, considering the location that I wanted to send it to.

"Transaction confirmed. Thank you and have a good day."

"Alright, thanks." I left after my business was done. The package would be send without any problems, even if the content gets discovered it still shouldn't cause any difficulties.

 **Mitsurugi's room**

"Meiya, I'm here for your night visit."

"Takeru, do not say something that others could misunderstand so easily." Meiya greeted me when I entered without knocking.

"I feel that I missed a great opportunity here, somewhere." She just came out of the shower as her hair was still moist with droplets of water. But Meiya was fully clothed in her wear, so I didn't get any enjoyable view.

"You have missed no such thing, Takeru. To what purpose caused you to pay me this visit?"

"Now that's just mean, I'm here to grant you your present." I offered her a wrapped stick. She took it and a confused demeanor made itself apparent on her aspect.

"Takeru… I assume you want me to open this?"

"You speculated correctly, Meiya. I'm positive that you will like this." The wrapping was undone and an elegant short sword was exposed.

"Takeru… is this a… wakizashi? How can I accept such a grand gift?" Meiya took the sword as uttermost discretion and carefully examined the scabbard and the handle without unsheathing the weapon itself.

"This is quite beautiful, if I do say so myself. Regrettably, in this current age. It's very difficult to find any relic with a better quality."

The wakizashi had a very comparable design to Meiya's own katana. With the same diamond patterned handle and a dark purple sheath. The only difference being a bright red line shaded at a forty-five degree angle spiralling up the scabbard.

"Takeru, I cannot receive this. Such a beautiful weapon is better suited for your usage." Meiya pushed the sword in my direction. I stalled her from returning it to its previous owner.

"Meiya, you may not know this but, I also have a katana with me. The other pair of this wakizashi. But I'm much more familiar with firearms and combat knives compared to swords. To me, they're just a pain in the ass to wield in battle. I believe that you can use this more effective than me."

"Still, Takeru…"

"Are you saying you will reject my goodwill, Meiya? I went through a lot of work to find this for you. If you honestly won't accept this, then it would just collect dust on the bottom of my shelf."

That was a big fat lie, I only ordered from Yuuko-sensei, the design and everything. Sensei took care of the finding for me.

"Takeru… if that is the case. I shall take this with the highest honour." Meiya bowed her head, a gesture of respect that was very uncomfortable for me.

"One other thing. Go get your Katana. I want to show you something."

"Very well, Takeru." Meiya appeared with her sword in hand.

"Here… fasten this on your waist and put your swords there." What I had her wear was a belt strap designed for her Katana. It was had a side slot for the short sword I gifted her as well.

"Takeru, are you sure dressing me this elegantly brings you joy?" Meiya stood like the proud samurai that she was. Her katana buckled to her left and the wakizashi pinned to her right. The last time Meiya looked this stylish was so long ago.

"Those straps also works with your fortified suit, I tested their durability and everything. The swords won't even bother you while piloting. You are good to go, Meiya." I patted her shoulder with an affirmed gaze.

"Takeru, why did you spend so much time and energy just for my sake?"

"It's because you are just so precious to me… your happiness is my happiness, after all." Meiya's cheeks illuminated a bright red and she turned her head to avoid meeting my sight.

"How could you say such embarrassing lines so easily! Takeru, you really are a man without any insecurity…"

"Hahaha. Isn't it lucky that you get such a person in your squad?"

"Are you not an arrogant one." She took her new blade and placed it in her drawer with care.

"Meiya, that sword is for you to wield. The edge is for your enemies who dare to bring you harm. Promise me that only the blunt end will ever face you. As long as you carry that sword, you will not forfeit your own life without concern for it." A wakizashi was often used to commit seppuku. I didn't give this to Meiya with that intention in mind.

"Why bring this up now?" It was unnecessary for me to discuss such a point, but I had to confirm my belief.

"It's… it's just that I know you're the type to sacrifice yourself without much consideration." I wouldn't forgive myself if Meiya someday traded her life for my own.

"Takeru, there will be times when my life must be used for a greater purpose." Meiya was brave. She would never hesitate to expense herself for others.

"That time will never come, I will be the one to stop it in its tracks. I place your safety above my own, I only ask that you do the same for the life that you deserve."

"But, Takeru… I have my own duty to fulfill. I cannot turn my back on the destiny that I carried through this life." As the Shogun's sister, the Shogun's shadow. Meiya couldn't allow herself to be free. So I will be the one to save her instead.

"I will share that duty with you. Whatever is your burden will be my burden. So if there is a time when you don't have a reason to continue, live for me."

"…Takeru… I… but why? Why do you see me like this? What makes me different from any other?"

"Meiya, I… you are the most important person in my existence, an existence that should had been ended long ago. I just can't endure the thought of you getting hurt, under any circumstances. I need you, Meiya. You are too special." My feeling for Meiya was a handful of things that were still true about me. But that was enough to push me to where I am today.

"But… this life is that of a mere shadow… it has no value… nor future. My duty is that which is bestowed upon me at the moment of my birth. And fulfilling it is my only goal. I have no merit, Takeru…" It felt as if Meiya stabbed my own heart with her words directed at her existence.

"That's not true! The worth of an object cannot just be stated for it to be the truth. Everyone has different opinions of the artefacts that'll vary depending on their interpretation. And to me, this shadow in front of my eyes is more invaluable than any riches this world can provide!" I can't afford to lose Meiya, she meant everything to me.

"Like I said to you, Mitsurugi Meiya. If you ever find your own existence to be meaningless. Please remember that I, a man whose life is dedicated to this world, a man that will save this earth from its disastrous end, see you as more precious than any prosperity. If your time ever ends… then I have no means to go on."

Her pupils held back her droplets as her façade was that of pure wonder and joy mixed in with confusion and a little fear.

"Ahhh… Takeru… no one has ever shown me this much hospitality before. I do not… know the correct way to respond…"

"Then just tell me your true feelings, Meiya. I don't wish to disregard your thoughts." Meiya's tears that she used to only cry for this country were soaking her eyes. She sat still for minutes, unable to speak anything more than mumbled sounds. Finally, when she lifted her head again. It was strength and resolve that remained in her sockets.

"I shall swear to you here, Takeru. I will defend this life, as this life belongs to you. If you place such emphasis upon my existence, I shall treat it with the same gravity. If I my existence can be the support for your will. Then please, treat this life as you see fit."

I took Meiya by her waist and embraced her with all the passion someone like me could muster. She accepted me as if it was the only natural thing to do.

—

"Alright, my business here is done. Let's keep this thing between us for now. I'll be taking my leave then." I was too unstable to stay any longer. The reminiscences of my history threatened to overwhelm my brain.

"I also believe for that to be the best. I cannot express my passion with mere words, Takeru." Her face was still tainted with red, her joyful expression showed a smile with honestly.

"That's fine, I understand your feelings." I maneuvered around her furniture for my departure.

"…I think I will name this wakizashi Yamato, Yamato Takeru." Meiya's terrible naming sense prompted a chuckle from me before I vanished from her view.

 **Shirogane's room**

'Ahhaa… what have I done…?' I reviewed my work after returning to my room.

My confession was on the spur of the moment. It was just that instant, when she denied her reason to live, at the same time denying my own. I couldn't hold myself back from correcting such twisted ideal. I also didn't tell her anything about me and Sumika.

'…There is going to be a lot of injuries happening to me…' at least those problems will be for the future Shirogane to deal with.

 **December 02, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Muuum, Muuuum!" Today I woke up almost getting suffocated by a rabbit. Change was definitely not welcomed here.

—

"Kasumi, shaking would be fine from now on." I stared at the massive rabbit that I gave her the day before.

"This is big Usa-san. He is a friend of Usa-san." Most original name ever. I was so proud of Kasumi for thinking of that.

"Yeah…? That's nice. Where is Sumika?" I distracted her when I couldn't say anything else about her naming sense.

"Sumika-san is still sleeping."

"Welp, let's get going then."

 **Kagami's room**

"Muuum, muuuuuum!" Sumika greeted the morning by almost getting smothered by a giant rabbit as well. We shared some small talk while she changed into her uniform.

"Ah, Takeru-chan. There's something I need to ask you." My name was called when I was about to exit her room.

"Yeah?" Sumika surveyed the hallway to check for any suspicious person like in the movies. She shut the door after seeing that no one was eavesdropping, also that she looked like a total moron.

"Takeru-chan, have you seen anyone acting weird these days?"

"Excluding you? Nope, not one person." Sumika shot me a look like she was trying to communicate with a monkey, which should be easy for her due to the two of them being the same species.

"Mou… Takeru-chan… anyway, it's just that from time to time, I detect the presence of someone else that isn't supposed to be here. I don't even know if they're a person or something else." The absolute baloney she spewed reminded me of a possible detail.

"So an invader, or a spy? You sure it's just not Mikoto's dad?" Yoroi was the most suspicious person around, but I doubted he would be the felon.

"No, it's something different. Like someone is trying to hurt our base, I just don't know who or what."

"Alright, Sumika. I might actually have an idea of what you're talking about. I'll tell sensei about this." The little information that Sumika provided could lead to a big catch, I needed to get the timing just right to reel in a big fish.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko' office**

"You know why I'm here, sensei?"

"This about the natural disaster by Mt. Tengen?" Why did I even bother to tell her the future that she clearly already knows?

"Yep, then you can tell what'll happen, right?"

"Both UN and the Imperial don't have the reserves to help them, so some cadets are the most likely possibility." Yuuko-sensei's genius knows no bounds. I felt like a dumbass for trying to remind her of the volcano.

"We just need to get those residents to safety, even if it's by force. No one here got the time to deal with them, unfortunately. The coup is going to become a reality no matter what we try to change now."

During my very first time in this world. I was held in the detention barracks for eight days while the coup was being fought outside.

"Indeed unfortunate. We really don't have much choice here, huh."

"Nope, this is also a sacrifice that I'm willing to take. For a better future." I couldn't help that old lady, again. I don't know how glad she would be if we saved her village like the first time. But I just can't afford the time and energy to help stop a volcanic eruption.

"I will see to it accordingly."

"Thanks, sensei. And one more thing, I need you to ask the mechanics for some adjustments."

I passed sensei a PDA naturally, she took the device and I placed my hand into hers to drop a piece of note under the cover of the tablet. The instructions written on paper had nothing to do with the engineers. The fake topic worked only as a good cover.

"Alright, Shirogane. I'll get them to move on it." The PDA had nothing of importance. It was some random TSF request that got delayed a few days back.

"Then I'll wait for the results." I waved my hand after being dismissed.

 **PX**

"Heyyy! Shiroganeee!" This woman just wouldn't shut up no matter what transpires.

"I'm not your grandparents, Hayase. I can hear you and see you just fine."

"Haha, don't worry, Shirogane. I just made sure that you aren't blind of deaf." My arm moved in to chop her head but she blocked it with ease.

"Shirogane! Is this the proper way to treat a lady?" Her question almost caused me to do a backflip due to its comedic values.

"Wahaha… hahaha… no. No, I wouldn't treat a lady like that." Her attack was the one that got intercepted this time.

"God. Damn. It, Shirogane! At least respect me as your elder. I'm gonna beat the shit out of you the next time we fight." Hayase remarked a very realistic threat if I wasn't careful about watching my back.

"Yeah, yeah sure." I only brushed her off, knowing I will never let my guard down.

"What are you doing here?"

"Just skipping class."

"Bad boy, Shirogane! Isn't learning the priority of a Cadet?"

"Shut up and go back to your paperwork, First Lieutenant." We traded comments as the time flowed on without distress.

—

"Shirogane, serious talk here. About your friend Kagami… can I ask this?" The topic was suddenly moved to a solemn one by Hayase.

"I thought this will come up sooner or later. Ask first, I will tell you what I can."

"Is she special?" Never a one to camouflage her statement.

"…Yeah, she is related to Alternative IV." I knew giving anything else away could jeopardize the project, even if it is to Hayase.

"I see, then I won't ask about the hypnosis and stuff. Another one then, why did she react like that when she saw… you know, the brains?" Hayase was very direct with her inquisition, just as one would except from this girl.

"She, humm… let me say it this way. Have we ever rescued a survivor from the BETA?" It was difficult no matter how I try to break it to her.

"No, right…? Unless… you can't mean…" She was smart enough to pick up on my hint.

"Your guess is most likely correct. Kagami is a very special person."

"…Is that so… she must also have a tragic past. I understand, Shirogane. I won't ask anything else."

"Thank you, Hayase. Anyway, have you seen Sumika recently? Notice anything different?"

"Yeah, I did. What's up with that crazily cute hairband of hers?" We continued to waste time during the afternoon, talking about random trivial subjects.

 **December 03, 2001**

 **PX**

"There you are, Shiroganeeee!" Marimo-chan's shout echoed within the vacant PX.

"Whatttt issss itttt, Marimo-channnnn?" I dragged out my voice on purpose to compete with hers.

"SHIROGANEEE! Why can't you fix that habit!"

"Marimo-chan, please. I live as a free man and will die as a free man. You can't tell me what to do." I promised myself long ago that Marimo-chan will always be Marimo-chan, it doesn't matter what the circumstances are. I will always dub her Marimo-chan as long as we're alone.

"Ahhaa… dealing with you is taking a lot of my vigour every day. Why can't you just stop acting like such a child?"

"Hahaha, can't stop won't stop. Besides, with wrong with relaxing a bit? We aren't on the frontlines right now, being soldiers doesn't mean that we have to be strict a hundred percent of the time. That will just wear us down eventually. If we can't enjoy the pleasantries in our daily life, how can we be truly serious on the battlefield?"

A lecture for Marimo-chan about the importance of enjoying the short periods of time when we can relax and unwind to better prepare for the next fight.

"For someone who skipped ninety percent of his lessons. You sure can talk at least, Shirogane." The truth was here all along.

"Now you're getting it, Marimo-chan."

"Haa… can you please, attend a training session at minimum? First Lieutenant, no cadet skips this amount of trainings." Marimo-chan got my skipping ass with a critical fact.

"But… it's so boring…" I tried desperately one last time to get away.

"We have simulated mock combat training this afternoon. Why don't you be present for that? As the squad leader, you can assign the teams."

"Alright, I should probably join them for a mock battle." I made up my mind and joined Marimo-chan back to the simulation chamber.

The teams ended up being me and Kasumi against the rest. I destroyed the others without playing with my food this time.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Hey, sensei. Are all of the preparations finalized?" I popped into Yuuko-sensei's office uninvited.

"Yeah, I'm busy right now, so don't bother me. All of your stuff is already set up. Just don't compromise our project with your little side activity." Sensei harshly confirmed my request and ordered to kicked me out without another word. I was getting anxious about what she was working on all these days.

"Yuuko-sensei, what are you working on, exactly?"

"It's nothing you need to know." Sensei brushed off my question.

"That's bullshit! The last time you said that I lost the most important person in my life!" I knocked the mellow mood around the room out of existence in an instant.

"…Look, sensei. I understand that you have your own problems to deal with. But I cannot allow you to be working on something without my knowledge."

"You sure you can talk to the Vice-Commander of this base like that, First Lieutenant? You think just because you're from the unknown future that makes it my duty to reveal everything to you?"

Yuuko-sensei wasn't the type to be pushed around without retaliating, and retaliate she did. But I also wasn't someone who folds under pressure.

"I must know everything going on here. I will not take the chance that could lead to some catastrophic mistake happening. I… I just need to know this, under any circumstances. Please, Yuuko-sensei. I can't afford to lose again…"

Yuuko-sensei stood up from her seat. Our staring contest of resolve ended in my victory when she finally handed me some pages.

"…I'm trying to find a way to reverse the reactor operation using the 00 Unit. It's honestly difficult to explain. But, basically if we can prevent leaking our information and instead have the 00 Unit withdraw BETA knowledge from the reactor, that'll be another great achievement for Alternative IV."

The papers had many difficult equations written over, some that even I didn't recognize.

"Did you ask Sumika, if she has any ideas?"

"I did, but she told me nothing about this subject. You happy now, Shirogane? I'm not trying to secretly screw you over, so just calm down."

There were times when it was problematic for me to trust sensei. But I knew that she also fought for humanity's victory.

"…Sorry, Yuuko-sensei. I'll just take my leave then."

"Wait. Now that I told you this, I want something in return." I was being blackmailed, to a certain extent.

"What do you want, sensei?"

"…Tell me, about your past. When did you first start looping?" The beginning was a tough time for me to recall. But I decided it's time to tell Yuuko-sensei the whole story after some inner-debate.

"Let's see… my first time was when Alternative V got the green light and everyone got fucked hard. I believe that I joined the Imperials and served under this one prick that NTRed me to the extreme, which by no means was pleasant. I did crash his arranged wedding back in the old world, so I guess we're even, maybe?"

"Anyway, it was a terrible time for all while I was going full on chuunibyou. But I got to pilot a Takemikazuchi 00C and stuff so it was all good. I met a bunch of people who I can't remember now… most of that time I couldn't remember. I died sometime after and was sent back to October 22 again."

I made myself comfortable on the sofa to continue the tale. The old serious atmosphere was blown away by a casual one. My order was to always laugh at my past mistakes and I planned on carrying that out no matter the time.

"On my second time through this world. I changed a bunch of stuff to build a better chance for humanity's success. But all went downhill when Marimo-chan was seen eating with another man… well, actually, nobody made it to see the end." My headache returned with vengeance to attack my mental capacity.

"So everyone died?"

"Yeah… something like that. We attacked Kashgar. Kasumi and I were the only ones… my time was over, but I…"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Alternative, January 02, 2002**

 **Path by the cherry blossoms**

"—looks like you haven't disappeared yet."

"Sensei…?" I got interrupted from by Yuuko-sensei when I was recalling back to my comrades… who all taught me so much with their lives.

"Yashiro told me you were out here… done saying goodbye?" Am I finished with my farewells?

"Yes, I'm done."

"Okay. So you have nothing left to do in this world." Am I seriously satisfied with this ending?

"…I guess… not… well… I'd be lying if I said there was nothing…"

"…I guess, not getting to make you cry. I promised the other world's Yuuko-sensei I'd do that…" Another promise I couldn't fulfill.

"Huhuhu… such a shame."

"It really is."

"Well, anyway… welcome home. You did great out there." 'I did great'? What did I do that deserves such praise?

"…Where'd that come from…?"

"I haven't seen you since you got back, right? Sorry I was so busy."

"What're you talking about, sensei? You've never come and talked to me right after I came back from an operation." Is this going to be the last time Yuuko-sensei greets me on my homecoming?

"Oh… really? Never?"

"Never." Could this mean sensei feels something about me leaving…? Nah, she wouldn't do that, would she?

"I read your report. Sorry to ask so much… after all that happened."

"No, it's fine… I wanted to do everything I could for this world before I left… especially since I don't know when I'll disappear." If I leave, is everything just going to end?

"True… Then we'd better hurry."

"Hurry…? With what?"

"—here you go." Yuuko-sensei pulled out the same handgun and mentioned for me to take it.

"…Eh…?" It was the same gun, a HK USP 9 semi-automatic pistol. The identical weapon Yuuko-sensei offered me last time.

"You're not a Causality Conductor anymore. Even if you kill me, nothing will happen to me in the other world. I'm sure that was one of the reasons you didn't back then." Sensei is right, but what'll killing her here accomplish?

"And since Kagami doesn't exist during this transfer, you really will cease to exist in this world. This time, not one person in this world will ever remember you existed." If I leave, will my name, my history, everything just disappear?

"So you won't have to worry about anyone wondering where you went and criticizing you for it." What about me? Where will I go? Will I criticize myself?

"…Or would you like me to answer some questions first? You must have countless things… you want to ask or tell me." Do I have questions? Do I have any message for Yuuko-sensei?

"…I told you to save whining and complaining until the end, right? —this is the end." Is this it? Can I just abandon everything and go back, to my old world?

"I think I will hold on to this." I took the pistol into my palms.

"So what are you going to do then?"

"Sensei, this world still needs you. Besides, you're going to keep fighting and suffering for humanity… right?"

"I see… so we're even…? If you're okay with that, it's easy enough for me. Fortunately I'm not weak enough to 'suffer' from so little."

"Hahaha… you're right." Yuuko-sensei is strong. She might be strict and calculating when it comes to completing her objectives… but that's not her real personality… she did so much for everyone as a person, a person that cares deeply about others.

Sensei accepted head-on the responsibilities of showing people the way… and she never ran away from dirtying her own hands. She locked all those things inside… never complaining to anyone.

"Am I… am I that strong as well? Can I bear all the responsibility of what happened?"

"Are you doubting yourself, Shirogane?"

"No… I won't worry about the past anymore." If I think about the history hard enough, will any of it change? Do I want to change it?

"Okay then… how about something more future-oriented?"

"Future… oriented…?"

—

We talked and talked. The old world, my old world will not be affected by anything that occurred here. I probably will just get send back to October 22nd. Marimo-chan, Sumika and everyone else will be fine. The world that I'm going to possibly will be heavily influenced by Sumika's feelings.

Sensei said that would be a good world for me, will it be a good world for me?

"This world, the one those guys gave their lives to protect… what will happen to it now? With the rest of the BETA war and all…"

"So you were…. wondering about that."

"Sorry… after all this I feel like I'm actually from this world… not that it really matters of course." My origin, where is it that I belong?

"I'm thinking… we shouldn't have anything to worry about for a while. What you guys left for us… that theory, the equations… the XM3… Recordings of the Primary Objective readings you brought back for us… all of that should keep humanity safe for at least thirty years."

"…Thirty years…" Yuuko-sensei explained that we still have a very long way to go. All the BETAs in the universe, human's own infightings. There was hope for us, but even with all this I attained, am I content?

"Sensei… everything I've done… everything we gained in exchange for their lives… do they have meaning?" Yuuko-sensei and Kasumi paused a little, I don't know how prepared I am right now. Is my old world the place I need to be?

"Of course they do. There's no question… that you saved this world."

"So I saved this world… Sensei… if I go back, who will I become?" This is my final question. I do need an answer, after all.

"You're still you, Shirogane Takeru. There's not going to be anyone else taking your spot."

"But… will I still be me…? This me?" Another pause. Is even sensei unsure about this?

"…I think, you won't remember what happened here… perhaps. Now that Kagami is gone… there is nothing tying you to this world. Your existence will disappear, maybe along with your memoires." Then my fate is already sealed.

"I… I don't want to die."

"What're you talking about? You will still be alive in your world." That is different though.

"But this 'me' here will die. What am I without my memoires? All this time that I spend here, they'll all be gone. I'm going to die here and another me, a normal 'me' will take over."

"That… may be the case. However, it's not certain. You could still retain your memoires with you. The Causality information could still flow through if it goes with you." But that doesn't help.

"Then it'll be even worse. I have to face them, face everyone that I left behind and those that died. I don't want that, that's worse than dying."

"Shirogane… I don't think you have a choice here… I'm sorry."

"I can't… I can't take this. And I thought I was ready…" I raised the firearm that is covered with my sweat, and pointed the barrel at Yuuko-sensei.

"…So you do want to shoot me, then? If you can aim for the head, that'll be great. I don't want others to get their hands on my brain." Yuuko-sensei only made an insensitive joke about my action.

"Shirogane-san! You can't!" Kasumi tried her hardest to object even with her tiny voice.

"I… what can I do? I don't know." I trained the iron sight onto Kasumi next.

"Hey, Shirogane! What do you think you're doing?!" Yuuko-sensei was less than pleased by my sign of aggression.

"This is the only way, isn't?" The final target, the only one that I wanted to shoot, was myself.

"But I promised! I thought I won't regret this!" My hand shook hard. I still don't have enough resolve.

"Shirogane, what do you really want?"

"I-I don't want this! I'm still scared! I don't want this to end just yet!" I undid the safety on the weapon. The muzzle was pointed toward my own head at last.

"But you're not the Causality Conductor anymore! You know this just as I do. Killing yourself here won't achieve anything!"

"Even so… this is my life, right? I have not yet given everything for this world. My friends went before me, it's my time now." Even if there is no hope, even if only an endless hell awaits me. I still want to hold onto a dream.

"I gambled away everything and won. But that's not enough for me. I still have my own future to trade for."

"You already saved this planet. There is no need for you to take such a risk and do it again." I did save this world, it was only this world. Not my friends that used to exist here.

"It's not enough! I want… I want everything! I can't go back when there is still a slimmer of doubt within me. Even if I just die here, I still want to try."

"That's really stupid, Shirogane! You're going to waste your life on a chance to redo everything?" Yuuko-sensei is right. This is the most foolish act I will perform.

"But even so… I just can't live with this. I'm regretting my decisions. My resolution is wavering again…"

"If you do somehow go back, what do you think will happen to this world? Your success here will become meaningless. No one would have wished for you to die right now. That's why they all used their lives to save yours!" Am I willing to abandon this?

"Then… I'll betray this world. I'll deny everyone's hope, their dreams of tomorrow. I'll throw away their tears for another chance of making everything better, even if it's only my own wish." This is the first time I've been honest to my feelings.

"That's extremely selfish of you. I'm sure no one that sacrificed their lives would want you to end you own like this. And even if you go back again, you're disregarding what they forfeited for this future."

"So what…? I gave up everything to save this world. Then I'll destroy it if I have to. I'll betray everyone, everything they gave up for this earth. But I'll carry that responsibility with me until I can save everything!" I found my resolve to turn my back on my precious team's dream in favour of my own.

"Are you that determined? There might not be any hope if you go again. And even that is a big gamble in itself."

"I am. Shirogane Takeru will dedicate his entire life to saving everything, saving everyone. That is my resolve. I will carry the burden of all those that I denied, all those that died, all those that I betrayed for my future. A tomorrow that I will craft with my two hands."

At that moment, strange lights flashed around me, signalling my time limit, also my harden heart that will not waver for this cause.

"Can I trust you on those words, Shirogane Takeru? This will be many times, maybe thousand times more difficult than what you accomplished until now. You could just die on this very spot. And even if you make it, only a path of hardship and struggle will present itself. And the end of that road could only have despair and failure in stock."

"Even so. Compared to my own demise, my own mistakes here. That path could still lead to hope. People's lives are so exquisite, but that's why I trade my own for this wager." The likelihood of my success was so bleak, but that won't change my mind anymore.

"Shirogane-san… you, right now, could maybe do it." Kasumi encouraged my baseless belief.

"Do you think so, Kasumi?"

"…You still carry a lot of Causality information. If your willpower is that strong. Maybe there's a chance." And no matter how slight that chance is, I'll still take the risk.

"When Sumika-san left, you already had your doubts, right? Then maybe that will be the power for you."

"If you really are going, then you should hurry. You're starting to disappear." As sensei remarked that, my legs that carried me this far lost their sensation.

"Yeah… I have to hurry. Thank you for everything, Yuuko-sensei. I will repay this generosity in full. When I start again."

I checked the pistol one final time. It held fifteen rounds within the magazine. I pointed the gun towards the direction of our old town and fired, eleven slugs cut through the air without any target. One for each of the person that was lost, they died because my incompetence, because my weakness. So it's only fair for me to devote this life they saved to protecting them all.

"Sumika, Meiya, Tama, Class rep, Mikoto, Ayamine, Marimo-chan, Captain Isumi, 1st Lt. Hayase, 1st Lt. Suzumiya, Kashiwagi… And now for me…" The hot barrel was kept a little distance away from my temple. My fingers were stuck to the trigger, ready to end my life at a moment's notice.

"So you really are that determined to do this?"

"I am. You said that time is the cruellest kindness, but I will not permit any suffering to take place at all." The quote I recited no longer holds any meaning to me.

"Then I'll ask you again… You're going to save humanity, right?"

"Yes."

"And you want to do it with your own strength, right?"

"Yes."

"But you know what you seek is an impossible reality, and even with infinite retries you might not reach it, right?"

"Even so. I will not give up anything anymore." Seeing our conversation has come to an end. I aimed at myself carefully as the light increased in brightness.

"Maybe the resolve to sacrifice nothing… is stronger than the resolve to sacrifice everything…goodbye, bratty saviour. Even though you sound pretty mature right about now." It was this time that I deserved Yuuko-sensei's compliment.

"Kasumi, I promise you I'll take you to see the oceans one day. Just wait for me, okay?"

"…Okay… I think… even if this is Sumika-san's feelings. I still would like to believe that… I did love you too…"

"…Is that so… Thank you… Kasumi… and I'm sorry"

"It's okay, Shirogane-san… see you later…"

"…Yeah… see you later…" With only one casing of a bullet, everything ended.

—

It was the same ceiling. It always will be the same ceiling.

"…So I'm really back here again…" I slowly raised out of my old bed. The surroundings were so familiar, but everything else was so different.

"I'm back… I'm back…! I'M BACK AGAIN!" And this time, nothing will be lost. I will protect everyone that cared for me all these times.

 **See next chapter for Author's notes.**


	10. The storm before the storm

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **Present day**

 **December 03, 2001**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"As you know, I didn't succeed right away. I still haven't succeed to this day. So now I feel kind of embarrassing tell you this story, sensei. Since it doesn't have a proper ending. But one day, one day I will stand proudly in on top of this world. Declaring to the people of my success."

"…How much… did you suffer in these loops…?" If Yuuko-sensei was actually concerned for me. This will be as close as to her actually showing it openly.

"I don't know. My guess is around four hundred years in total. But for all the times where I can clearly remember, it's more like only seventy years."

"So many loops get lost when I don't recall them the moment I wake up again. It's honestly kind of annoying. Still, I can't remember what I can't remember. Some memories get triggered when I see stuff that reminds me of whatever happened, so I can still unveil some secrets from time to time."

"Then you memoires still do get lost when travelling from one world to another… ahha, this makes my problems seems so insignificant." Good thing Yuuko-sensei wasn't going through the same realm over and over again.

"Well, that's the end. Nothing's left other than my experience with watching the team die again and again. Don't think you want to hear that though."

"I certainly don't need that right now. You're free to go, Shirogane. My opinion of you did change for the better, if you must know." I couldn't see how my story of sacrifice and death had a probability of reducing sensei's impressions. Than again, it was good to hear.

"I'll take my leave, sensei."

 **December 04, 2001**

 **PX**

"…Ahha! Takeru-san and Sumika-san!" Tama perceived the two of us and called our names. Her new aspect with the cat bell and cat tail was quite nostalgic if I must comment. Sumika and I both shared an extraordinary moment, remembering back to the other world that we can no longer return to.

"Huh? Where's Kasumi-san?" Mikoto noticed Kasumi's absence.

"She's still with the Professor right now." Sumika replied for me.

"Eh? I see… I think Mitsurugi-san and Ayamine-san will be here soon. Sakaki-san already left though."

—

"Mitsurugi-san… you're still carrying around your swords?" Tama's eyes darted to the weapons hanging by Meiya's waist when she made her arrival.

"Is this bothering you, Tamase? The base's weapon regulations do not prohibit the carrying of my steels."

"Ahaaaa… nevermind, Mitsurugi-san. It's just that…" Tama was hiding her nerviness to her best ability.

"If you find this to be disturbing, Tamase. I will return my swords to my room at once."

"Wait, no! It's not a big deal, Mitsurugi-san! I was just not used to your new look, that's all. You still look very pretty!"

"Thank you, Tamase. Your new appurtenances suit you perfectly as well." It was a quiet afternoon, really. The calmest is always before the storm

—

"—Imperial Army disaster relief squadrons evacuated several squatters when the volcano showed signs of activity early yesterday morning. There were no serious difficulties, and all fourteen civilians are now safe and secure…"

After sitting down with Ayamine, the news program on the TV announced the evacuation of the Mt. Tengen. We all turned to take a look at the update.

"—the area they resided in had been declared very dangerous, and no civilians were granted permission to live there. However, even the confirmed reports of former residents who had illegally returned home number in the…"

Everyone paid close attention to the newscast, the reporter broadcasted news that I was all too familiar with.

"…Regarding the treatment of squatters who ignored several past evacuation warnings, some members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were of the opinion that saving them was not an option, but the Imperial Diet disregarded them and decided to act on its duty to protect the lives and possessions of all its citizens…"

The show proceeded without care for our engrossment. I recalled the argument Meiya often had with me regarding the treatment of the civilians.

"What a good waste of time." My commented was uttered only for the sake of controversy.

"What do you mean, Takeru?" Just as I predicted, Meiya was the first one to pick up the bait.

"Those people clearly went back according to their own will. And the Imperials were forced to waste time and resources to save a few unlawful residents."

"Is that where your view lays, Takeru? You believe the soldiers were wasting time and assets?"

"Yep, if them citizens wished for death on their own land, let them. We are only exposing the soldiers to risk by sending them to save the inhabitants. What if we lost some combatants while trying to help people that were seeking death? To think the Imperial Diet view the value of the people as more important than the soldiers."

My own assessment of this situation had changed over many years.

"Do you say that with no respect to the people? I understand your point. But do you not care for the will of the civilians?"

Meiya somehow got that theory out of what I said, not like she was wrong. I didn't care for the citizens. I didn't have the time to care.

"How can the wishes of a few overrule the greater good? The future of mankind can't be stopped just so some random people get their own wish." That was what I said, but the contradiction to me was as clear as the BETA's hostility to mankind.

I abandoned a world where we destroyed the Kashgar hive just so I could gain another chance at saving my loved ones. Still, not all men have the same power as I do. I made my choice because I had the supremacy to do so.

"Takeru! The duty of the Army is to serve the people!" No matter what she said, I know I was correct. But my goal here was to trigger Ayamine, so I'll just play by the book.

"That's ludicrous. The success of any mission is absolutely more important than the wishes of the population. If the soldiers followed the will of the individuals and failed their mission. That would be a colossal disgrace to the army that they serve."

My words precisely pushed the bottoms on Ayamine. She slammed her food tray with hidden fury and sprinted away into the halls.

"—K-Kei-san, you okay?!"

"A-Ayamine-san!" She appeared to be even more upset than usual.

"Takeru… I will take care of this. Please go after Ayamine."

"Alright, I shall do just that."

 **Yokohama Base hallways**

"Kya!" Ayamine's shriek of surprise never ceased to amuse me.

"That was a good sound, Ayamine. Now only if you acted more girly all the time…" I caught her at usual place where we bumped into each other countless times, from my perspective, anyway.

"Takeru… die." She did her utmost to reach for me so the renowned Space Tornado Ayamine can be executed on this victim. But being the badass that I was, I casually dodged her attempt. Ayamine then turned and dashed further down the halls.

I followed her track which led me to the letter that she dropped as always. This letter from Sagiri Naoya, Ayamine's ex-fiancé. The man behind the 12/5 coup, a crisis that will be manipulated to my absolute advantage.

—

I came back a bit later to where Ayamine dropped her envelope. Just as I had foreseen, she was trying to look for them.

"You know, letters like this aren't hard to find." The paper with words was held by my two fingers while I leaned against the wall. Ayamine replied with silence, so I did the same.

"…Did you look?" The tranquility was eventually broken by the Sonic-haired girl.

"Of course I did. An unopened inspected letter isn't a thing around here."

"…What did he write?" She asked me for the content.

"He was thinking about proposing to you." I lied with a straight face. Ayamine actually was about to take me seriously until I couldn't hold back and laughed.

"You're not like him… you can lie just like me." My deceptive skills altered her judgment of me.

"That comes with the job, you know? Now tell me, how did you obtain letters that wasn't inspected?"

"…It's better not to know." Ayamine rejected me a clear answer.

"Sorry, not happening. I want the truth here." I wasn't willing to back down. Besides, the conversation must be driven to its end result.

"Takeru… I don't wanna kill you."

"That kind of threat is only affective when I make them." The line was delivered with an immensely severe tone. Ayamine couldn't keep her composure when I took a couple of steps closer. She changed course and fled for the third time this day.

 **Rooftop**

"You never used one of the Yakisoba tickets. Did your craving for that food declined when I wasn't watching?" Ayamine only glanced toward the ruined city, not a sound escaped her vocal cord.

I didn't give chase after Ayamine took off earlier as it would have been tasteless for me to just chase down a girl after making a serious threat on her life. Instead, I prepared the Yakisoba bread that never once failed me and encountered her again on the roof of the base.

"…Shirogane… so persistent. I don't even wanna look at you."

"Then I shall be on my way." I turned for the door without any sign of hesitation.

"Ahh—" Ayamine instinctively reached out her hand to stop me.

"I only joke." I reversed my heading and faced her again. She couldn't react fast enough and I caught the sight of her blush for a spilt second before she donned her stoic mask.

"…You really are different… you can lie so easily." My decades of practice in the art of deceiving others had yet again paid off.

"Like I said, it's all part of my job. Not much I can use to my lead in this kind of a world." Her earlier remark brought back memories of days that would be better forgotten. The times when I lost everything, and kept losing everything.

"Anyway, I've got you a wonderful dish here." The awkward moment had to be discontinued when a headache struck me once more. Luckily, the topic on track was a fine distraction.

"…Yakisoba?"

"You really have no imagination, woman. Nevertheless, you happen to be spot-on this time." The Yakisoba bread that was pre-made for her sake was disclosed. Ayamine dashed over for her dream food. But was halted when I raised my hand to her face.

"Wait, sit."

"Huh…? What…?" My order to Ayamine wasn't comprehended at first. I brought the Yakisoba bread within sniffing range of her face. The eyes of a hungry beast targeted the unreachable meal in front of her.

"Come on now, just sit on the ground with four legs and I will give you this." My plan for revenge was so close to its accomplishment.

"Takeru… you for real?"

"Obviously, pretend to be a good doggy and you shall be rewarded."

"You'll remember this…" I could see real conflict was being built within Ayamine. Her desire for her favourite meal was clashing with her pride.

"If you get down and shake, I will provide you with another dozen of Yakisoba tickets. Promise."

"…" She was very tempted to temporary banish her dignity for a taste of her most cherished dish. Only a little push would collapse her self-respect at this point in time.

"This one is personally made by me, you know? I processed the Yakisoba to bring out its original flavour. I can vouch for the quality of this product, just like real Yakisoba."

"Say, Ayamine. Have you ever tasted actual Yakisoba? Not this synthesis crap, but real. Real Yakisoba made for the sole purpose of bring delight to one's tongue. And let me tell you, they're fantastic."

Ayamine finally couldn't resist the temptation of the recipe that was dangling before her eyes. Her rear lowered to the floor like a well-trained puppy and out stretched her hand.

"Takeru… shake." Her left palm was extended with uncontaminated loath. I took with arrogances and gave her hand a firm wobble.

"Here you go, good girl. You can stand back up when I let you." Ayamine instantly grabbed the Yakisoba bread and made short work of it within seconds. I was grinning like idiot for assessing dominance over a fussy girl.

"Takeru will be executed… if you don't give me another one." A refill was demanded.

"Is that the right way to ask people for things?"

"More… please."

"And how should you address me?"

"Takeru, asshol—" My sadistic glare put a stop to her rudeness.

"…Please give me another one… master… Takeru." The sense of pride I felt was so satisfying. Having finally trained Ayamine to obey my command. I did feel somewhat guilty due to what she did to me was never this extreme.

"Alright, here." She devoured the second bread just as fast.

"More… please. Master Takeru." I maintained her feeding until she was ultimately full.

—

"I can't eat anymore."

"If you asked for another after eating six serving of Yakisoba bread. I will have to send you to the hospital for two check-ups." I passed her some napkin to clean herself up.

"Thank you for the meal… it was delicious."

"Of course, you can't compare normal Yakisoba with the synthetic ones. This time it's free, but if you want more, you will have to pay with your tickets."

"Then why… was it fun trying to train me?" Ayamine asked for my true intention, training her was just a bonus.

"Absolutely, but that is only a bonus. Take it as a token of admission, for what I must do in the future." My apology reached her in advance, because I knew the impending events that will sour our relationship.

"What will you do?"

"The letters, I won't ask about them now. But mark my words when I say that I cannot stop before I reach my objective. Not even if you ended up detesting me for it…" I must protect her, even if it meant that she will no longer be by my side.

"That won't happen… Takeru." Ayamine's statement was unexpected, she normally doesn't even reply to my questions.

"Huh? How can you be sure?"

"Because… I know I can't come to hate you…" The way she presented her reason, with a little red tinted over her cheeks. My heart skipped a beat when I realized.

"Haha, I wish you were speaking the truth…" I spun me body and proceeded to the stairs without any goodbye. The communication between the world saviour in progress and his devious supporter ended without another line.

"Takeru… I trust you… anytime and always." Or so I thought.

"I… I… see you later, Ayamine." The reply to her conviction was not one that she deserved, but I wasn't able to say anything else for only a second, thanks to my brain for not playing with full deck.

"I will be waiting." Ayamine muttered her last words, thinking that I wouldn't be able to hear. Even she was so strong deep down.

 **Imperial Capital, Sakaki Kurechika residence**

"Mr. Prime Minister. A package was received today through unconventional means. It's addressed to you, sir."

"A package? From whom?"

"The sender is unknown, but it's delivered from Yokohama Base."

"Yokohama… is it safe?"

"Yes, sir. The scans showed nothing abnormal."

"Alright, I will open it. You can go."

"Yes, sir."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 05, 2001**

 **Hallway**

"So what, the Instructor just told you girls to keep waiting? I was hoping to beat the squad up in our mock training today." My conversation with Meiya was about today's supposed schedule. None of this will matter when the base gets raised to DEFCON 2 in a few more minutes.

"Takeru, you appear to have a special craving for combat. Are you sure you can contain your own desires?" If Hayase is really influencing me this strongly, I can only hope the hospital has a bed for me.

"Nonsense, Meiya. I enjoy combat as much as I enjoy any sort of entertainment. But that depends on the se—" The alarm rudely interrupted my joke. Meiya had a look of bewilderment. Class rep who just rounded the corner had the same appearance.

"—Moving to DEFCON 2. All combat squadrons stand by in full gear. Repeat, moving to DEFCON 2. All combat squadrons…" The loudspeaker looped the orders for all soldiers to be on standby.

"Meiya, Class rep! You two go ahead and meet with the Instructor. I will have to see the Professor."

"Roger!" The two girls left in haste while I made my way to the command center.

 **Yokohama Base, Command Center**

"—what do you mean by that… General Radhabinod?" Tama's old man was in the same conversation with Yuuko-sensei and the General as always at the time of my arrival.

"This is the Japanese Empire's problem. We, the UN, intervening without the Imperial government's request would be…" The General purposed his counterargument. This wasn't a debate that I could cut into just based on my knowledge alone, I stepped aside to where no one could notice me and observed further.

"We no longer have a moment to spare. If we let this opportunity slip by, we will regret it later."

"That sounds like America's way of doing things… does the UN want the Asiatic Sphere to listen to America that badly?" Yuuko-sensei disagreed with the Undersecretary's opinion.

"Professor, the UN Army is nothing more than the army of the United Nations. Despite the independence you've been granted, you and your Alternative Plan are all part of the UN, and thus servants of the international community."

"Like the general said, the Japanese government hasn't requested any assistance… when exactly did the UN gain the authority to nullify the sovereignties of its member states?"

Their quarrel continued with no end in sight. To make a long story short: Undersecretary Tamase wished to persuade the General to mobilize the UN Army and intervene in the Coup.

However since the Japanese government had yet to request the UN's assistance, we can't really charge into their conflict with guns blazing.

"I see… we are at an impasse." An impasse indeed, Undersecretary. I preferred to be deployed as soon as possible too. But the politics that is the nations overruled our personal longings.

"…Now is the time to prioritize humanity's future. Just because that happens to line up with the interest of a particular group…" Good points were made by Tama's old man, but those aren't enough to sway the world.

"We understand that, which is why we want you to follow proper procedure. Show the world that the UN Army does indeed represent justice." The General also wanted to see humanity's victory. But the interest of different groups with the same goals couldn't come to an understanding.

"Not as a UN staff member… but as a citizen of Japan… I want to see Japan complete Alternative IV." Now the words of the Undersecretary could mean different things to different ears.

"Undersecretary… saying such a thing here…"

"Why does it matter, General? I think I'll say something else as a Japanese citizen myself."

"P-Professor!" Nobody in this Command Center could see eye to eye. Not like it was unexpected for people to hold different values. The Americans that wants to move on from the Alternative Plans. The Americans that wants to move on to Alternative V. And us, the Japanese that are dedicated to the success of Alternative IV.

"In the end, America wants to maintain the Far East Defense Line just to make sure the fighting never ends up on its own soil. They say they want a change of strategies, but really they just want to use G-Bombs on every other part of the planet to annihilate the BETA and rule what's left of the world, leaving their own country unharmed."

"If the UN ceases to behave the way they want… they'd probably do that on their own." I didn't find anything fundamentally wrong with America's attempt to keep the fighting of their own soil and prioritizing their benefit first. But as part of Alternative IV, I would not allow their independent actions.

"…You sound confident, but you have yet to produce any tangible results. What makes you so sure…"

"Heh, I'll let you decide whether I'm bluffing or not." Sensei was very self-assured this time around, having already produced The 00 Unit.

"…You win… I'll take my leave for now."

"Given formal permission from the UN Security Council, Yokohama Base will gladly accept help from the American Army"

"Very well then… I shall return shortly." The Undersecretary left through the door, he somehow failed to notice me.

"…This is getting bad."

"Absolutely. America's trying to worm its way into Yokohama, and for all we know, get direct control over the plan themselves." America wanted this base. They were willing to take Japan, or take on Japan to achieve it.

"The Security Council would never allow that, but… they do not wish to anger America any further." The discussion concluded with the fact that the Security Council will vote fast to allow intervention. All going according to the States' plan.

"I'll return to my station… Professor, take care of things."

"Yes, sir." The General exited the Command Center and Yuuko-sensei followed soon after.

"What are you doing here, Shirogane Takeru?" I must applaud Yoroi for finding me even when I put some real effort into camouflaging myself.

"I should think the same thing you are, Yoroi Sakon."

"Now… what are you two doing here?" Yuuko-sensei circled back to catch the both of us.

"So you first, Yoroi Sakon-san."

"The souvenir I gave you from Easter Island was superb, no? Would you believe I bought it in Chile?" He instantly derailed me off topic.

"The statue was given to Kasumi. I am sure that she enjoyed it greatly!" My voice was raised to prevent the man from cutting me off with his nonsensical flow.

"Well, none of that matters really."

"No, no. of course not."

"I'm not eccentric enough to come here just to ask you something. Now then, Professor… would you mind if I changed the subject a little?" The very eccentric man asked to change the topic that never went anywhere else.

"It never changed in the first place." Yuuko-sensei held the same opinion as me.

"I'd prefer it if you were a bit more choosy about where you say such things. Throwing out classified information left and right… what if there was a spy listening in on you?"

"There are never any spies in the Command Center, other than you."

"And since I'm not a spy, perhaps you're safe." The spy from the Ministry of Information just denied that he was a spy.

"Fine, so there's no problem. How much of that did you hear?" Sensei drove the focus back on track.

"You know I can't tell you that. Well, if you must know, all of it."

"Except for the part you can't tell, right? I know." I joked about Yoroi's inconsistency, which he only laughed off.

"…You're quite noisy, Shirogane Takeru."

"I believe myself to be part of this dialogue as well."

"But a very polite man. Well, good for someone this young, you have a bright future ahead of you." His commendation failed to bring me any bliss. The discussion trucked on about the current situation in the capital. But then turned into a comparison of pawns, somehow.

"Anyway, Shirogane, do you need anything from me? There isn't anything you can do here, you know?"

"I only dropped off to check the final preparations." A lie wasn't obligatory even in front of Yoroi at this point.

"Is that so, just go back to your squad if they need you, okay?"

"I'll do that." However, I decided to stay and keep listening for now.

—

"You said some brave things to Undersecretary Tamase a moment ago… I take it things are going swimmingly with the Alternative Plan? Perhaps I should ask… if Shirogane Takeru helped?" There was no doubt that Yoroi uncovered many classified details about me, but none of them will matter once this ends.

"Didn't I just tell you not to bite off more than you can chew? I'd hate it if someone else got rid of my pawns, but if I had to do it myself… I might not mind so much."

"Oooh, scary… and so cold, despite all the pains I've gone through for your sake, Professor." Scary Yuuko-sensei is scary.

"Nice words… but aren't you doing it all for your own sake?"

"—yes, of course… in my line of work, one must accomplish one's objectives by any means necessary. You are no different… Professor Kouzuki." The sudden change of tone attracted me somewhat.

"Be it a relative of the Shogun, or the Prime Minister's daughter… or my own daughter… I would not hesitate to sacrifice them. And what's inconvenient… will simply have to be dealt with." That was the line I always remembered Yoroi by. The idea of sacrificing someone for the greater good.

"That's some interesting ideas you are throwing out there, Yoroi Sakon." I intruded my way into the discourse.

"Do you think so, Shirogane Takeru?"

"Will you really sacrifice those people for humanity?" I understood Yoroi's resolve just as well, but our concept of sacrifice was different.

"Of course, I would make sure that their sacrifice doesn't go to waste."

"That's good, I also believe in sacrificing the minority for the majority. But I will not allow you to implement such an act." I openly denied and agreed to his cause at the same time.

"Oh? You also understand it, yet you will not let me put it to action. Contradicting man you are, Shirogane Takeru."

"We are different, Yoroi Sakon. I recognize your determination, but I'll never approve of it. You'll not sacrifice one of my friends for the greater good. Because I'll save this world without the need of such sacrifices."

Yoroi and I were to fundamentally different people. He didn't have the power that I did. He doesn't understand my pain, so I knew I have the power to strive for a world where my friends don't have to die for humanity to have a fighting chance.

I will eradicate any and all things between me and my future, nothing shall stop me, not anymore.

"Hahahaha! The dream of a child, Shirogane. Do you truly believe that to be possible? To save everyone and receive a fairy-tale ending?"

"I create my own possibilities, Yoroi. You can just sit on the side-line and watch me construct the future." My only goal, through all these times never changed once. Until the day that I fulfill my promise, there will be no room for doubts. Not from me, not from anyone.

"Wahaha! You really are an interesting person, Shirogane Takeru! I look forward to how your dream will come to fruition." He only chuckled loudly hearing my resolution, but Yoroi Sakon wasn't a man who forgoes an option without attempting.

"But very intriguing nonetheless… now then, I think we've said too much. I'll be taking my leave soon." Yoroi reached inside his pocket and handed me a doll.

"Shirogane Takeru, I give you this. It's a souvenir from the lost continent of Mu. It'll keep you safe. Carry it with you at all times. I trust that you will need its protection." I surveyed the doll in its entirety before pocketing it myself.

"Thank you for your concern, Yoroi Sakon. I keep this close to me at all times." The belief of superstition was not a part of me. But in his own way, this was how Yoroi showed his encouragement.

"Truly a well-mannered gentleman, Shirogane Takeru. I will warn you just in case, throw that away and you'll be cursed. But I think it's unlikely for that to happen. Farewell." The man turned and disappeared without a trace.

"Time for us to go then, Shirogane. Your resemblance to that man just deceased dramatically. Good for you, I guess."

"I'm not him, sensei. To save this world and all of my friends, I need to be even stronger than anyone else."

"Is that so, I won't suspect your determination, Shirogane. But standing about discussing willpower won't save the world." Yuuko-sensei advised for me to move along and take action instead of running my mouth.

"I'm going to be demonstrating that power very soon, sensei. This coup will be the perfect backdrop."

"That's good, come on then. Let's get going." She led the way to the briefing room with me behind.

 **Briefing room**

"Good morning, everyone." Yuuko-sensei casually strolled in.

"Salute!" My shout for the squad to turn and show respect to sensei as she was a superior officer.

"I keep telling you to quit it with the salutes… here you go. This is everything we know about the current situation." A folder was passed to Marimo-chan.

"I've already briefed them on the basics…"

"Just look at it." Marimo-chan took the documents and studied them carefully.

"…Professor, why would you brief the cadets… on all these details?"

"This isn't just any training squad you know? This is my personal squad granted due to me being the Executive Officer of this base. I need them to know this much."

"…Understood." Marimo-chan didn't display any objection with her order.

"And Shirogane will be participating in whatever mess this is. So welcome him back."

"Heyyyy! I'm back, girls!" I waved my hands in the air for some added effect.

"XO Kouzuki, a call from the 11th Pacific Field Army HQ." Yuuko-sensei was informed of a communication request by 1st Lt. Piatif. She quickly called Marimo-chan over as well.

—

"The UN has just now decided how we are to deal with the situation. The United Nations Security Council has also decided to incorporate the American 7th Fleet currently deployed in Sagami Bay into the emergency response. This will be officially announced approximately two hours from now at 07:00 hours. At the same time, Yokohama Base will begin to receive the American Army."

Just as I remembered, the 7th Fleet will be seeing some action sometime soon. Yuuko-sensei requested a call with the General and asked Marimo-chan to sustain the briefing.

"As I explained before… the capital is nearly under the complete control of the coup d'état forces. The most recent information indicates that the Ministry of Defence, the last one continuing to resist, has just surrendered."

"There's also a possibility that the Honour Guard has engaged the coup d'état forces around the Imperial Palace, though this is unconfirmed." Meiya hid her concern well enough only for me to discern.

"According to the provisional government in Sendai, assault forces are being gathered to retake the Shogun and the capital. Also, the ringleader of the coup d'état has been identified as Captain Sagiri Naoya from the Imperial Defence Army 1st Division's 1st TSF Armoured Regiment."

Ayamine's feature was at an odd angle for me, I couldn't catch glances of her expressions at the predictable news.

"Also… the provisional government has confirmed… that the coup d'état forces have assassinated many members of the cabinet. However, the Prime Minister's current location is unknown. We were unable to confirm his wellbeing at this moment."

It would be to our benefit if the Prime Minister managed to escape. Class rep seemed noticeably conflicted at the news of her missing father.

"We should assume that the Prime Minister was not present when the coup d'état forces made their way into the capital. The likeliness for his safety should be decent at this point. It's most probable that he was evacuated beforehand." Marimo-chan reassured the worried Class rep that no news could be good news.

She only nodded at this mention. Yuuko-sensei got off from her phone call and directed for the TV to play the Message form Sagiri himself.

Sagiri's broadcast was the same as always. He accused the government and the Imperial Army for ignoring the needs of the population and only focusing on their own gains. The transmission itself was the same boring crap as always, I lost interest until Yuuko-sensei ordered for it to be terminated.

"…We may be UN Army soldiers, but we are also Japanese. It's only natural to be affected by this… however… It's our duty to serve more than just our country in this war, if we are to ensure the survival of humanity. Do not forget that." Marimo-chan took over again to remind us of our duties as the members of the UN Army.

"Everyone recite your enlistment oath!" Marimo-chan wanted us to remember the promise we made to the UN Army. But the military wasn't a person, promises made to an organizations held no meaning.

"What's wrong? Recite the enlistment oath!"

"That's enough, Sergeant Jinguuji." I spoke up against my former superior. My squad mates couldn't process the fact that their squad leader just addressed the Instructor with such a tone. Kasumi and Sumika quickly grasped my intention, followed by Meiya.

"Shirogane! What you do… are you serious about this?" Marimo-chan realized I was behaving according to my rank as a First Lieutenant.

"I think now is a good time for this. Yuuko-sensei, if you would do the honour." I stepped up to the platform and Marimo-chan made room for me by the center. Yuuko-sensei already apprehended my meaning in my action. The rest of the room still kept a confused expression.

"Shirogane! What are you doing!" Class rep was the first to make her displeasure known.

"Calm down now, Cadet Sakaki. Let me reintroduce this man again. This is First Lieutenant Shirogane Takeru. And he's very vital member of the UN's most central project."

The four weren't informed of my true rank were utterly shocked by the revelation. It appeared that the screws in their jaws all got undone at the same time except for one.

"It's not only me, you two should also come up." I gestured for Sumika and Kasumi to approach the stand. The two girls walked up nervously and took their place on the stage

"And these two are Second Lieutenant Kagami Sumika and Second Lieutenant Yashiro Kasumi respectively. Hehe, you sure they aren't your guards, Shirogane?" I could only sigh at sensei's comment.

Kasumi and Sumika stood behind me and to my either side, the way the positioned themselves made me appear to be their leader without a doubt.

"Anyway, he will take over command for the 207 training squad from now on. Anything else, Shirogane?"

"Nope, thanks for the introduction again, sensei." The others still had yet to recover from my awe-inspiring declaration.

"Cadets! Salute 1st Lt. Shirogane!" Marimo-chan barked for the show of regard the squad didn't perform. They swiftly saluted me when their bodies acted instinctively. That helped them cope with the news to a certain extent.

"It's fine, please treat me only as your friend and your squad mate. I didn't tell you girls about this fact earlier for two reasons. First is that that we could avoid the gap between a superior and a subordinate."

"I want you to just think of me as your comrade that you can trust on the battlefield. Only salute me and stuff when the General is here or something. The same goes for Sumika and Kasumi." I explained one of my motivations behind my hidden identity, and the squad took it rather well.

"Second cause is my duty of evaluating this squad. The 207th Squadron holds great potential. And not just for the reason you're all thinking. This squad has true talents, and my mission is to put those talents to the best capability possible. We clear?"

"Yes, sir!" That sent a chill up my spines, but being a superior comes with its drawbacks as well.

"Please, don't do that. So then, any questions?"

"1st Lt. Shirogane, can we a—"

"Just Takeru is fine, we are friends right? Class rep." I retold her the statement I just presented.

"Then Takeru, can we ask as to why you decided to announce your rank now?"

"Good question, Class rep. I publicized my rank at this time is because I need this squad to follow my command in the up-coming mission. If we are to be involved in this coup, I can't have the few of you running around like chickens with the head cut off in a battle against other human combatants. If we do get deployed, I need the all of you to follow my authority. Is that clear?"

"Yes, sir." The all replied without any issue. But it wasn't a very tense answer that I earned, good to know that they still considered me as the old Takeru they were all too familiar with.

"Another question, can we ask about the project that you are attached to?" Meiya was the second one to question, she really wanted to be in the loop of things. I appointed my gaze to Yuuko-sensei, her sights informed me to not reveal too much.

"The three of us are a part of a project by the UN called the Alternative Plan. We are involved with its fourth one, Alternative IV. Out of the three of us, Sumika is the most essential member of that plan."

"But that means nothing on the battlefield, I won't tell you to safeguard her during a mission. Do what you feel is the best course of action out there. I will watch out for the all of you."

I knew there will never be a time when I need to rely on my teammates to protect Sumika, that will be my role. Same as my role to protect everyone else here.

"There is no need to watch out for me specifically, everyone! I can take good care of myself!" Sumika backed up my point with confidence.

"Any other questions?" The squad looked at each other with blank stares before shaking their head at me.

"Alright then. I will pick up the subject where Marimo-chan dropped off. I stopped you from reciting the oath this time because I didn't find it… suitable. I hope that all of you still remember the conversation we had about the choice in the hands of the soldiers, right?" The girls nodded at me firmly. I took that as a signal to continue my speech.

"If we do get involved in this fight, I want all of you to think about what it means to clash against other soldiers. We all have different ideas and beliefs, like I said. Maybe their principles could end up being the correct one, who knows."

"However, if we are uncertain about the righteousness of their ideals, then I say that we should fight for ours. I want all of you to think of a reason to fight, a reason for you to risk your lives in the future."

"If you can ponder out a concrete cause for yourself, then you should be prepared to face anything." My speech came to a conclusion as the team begin to seriously reflect on my words and their meanings.

"One last thing. The 1st TSF Armoured Battalion and 5th Airborne Support Battalion are on emergency standby. All other forces will stay to defend this base. We also will be receiving the American Army here. But that doesn't mean we won't be assigned, prepare yourselves for any situation until you're called again. Dismissed!"

 **08:30 AM**

 **Hallway**

"Hey, Class rep. how you holding up?"

"Ahha! Oh, it's just you… Takeru. Don't sneak up on people like that, you scared me a bit." I only hoped Class rep wouldn't respond with a wretched mood like before. The news about her father wasn't a good one by a long stretch, but at least it wasn't the worst, either.

"Please, you should be delighted by my presence." My feet carried me to Class rep after I wandered around the base looking for my team. Her eyes under the new glasses lost their focus on the scenery of our base outside the window.

"Takeru… you really won't change, huh."

"Nope, I will always be the same around here."

"That's… quite nice, actually." Class rep was appreciative that my indifference will be sticking around.

"Glad who I am can please you." I bowed to her in mockery and she disregarded it entirely.

"Say, Takeru… have you ever killed someone?" A wide question just appeared out of the left field.

"…Yeah… yeah, I have." Me answering Class rep's question honestly only darken the mood even more.

"You really are special then, much more experienced than any of us. What's it like… to have to end another's life?"

"I can tell you if you want to, you sure you want to know?" Class rep came out of her self-debate with a resolute nod.

"My first kill… it's funny. The first time I killed another human, it was my most important friend…" Class rep stared at me with a stunned expression that soon turned into sorrow.

"I'm so sorry…! I didn't know…."

"It would be much more weird if you did. Anyway, we were on this mission to destroy one of the BETA's most important facilities. Six of us went down, I was piloting this very important weapon thingy so the team had to protect my ass."

"They ended up getting picked off one by one until me and this other girl was all that's left. We ran into this super BETA that grabbed my last team member and used her as a shield of some kind."

"So she begged me to shoot her along with the target, which I did… it was really funny, her last words to me was a confession. Right before I turned her back into matter with the BETA."

I produced a few sounds that resembled a dry laughter, but I couldn't even manipulate my vocal cords to make the sound.

"Takeru… I'm so sorry." Class rep glanced away with eyes that shined with sadness and grief.

"But that wasn't your question. After that, I killed even more people. My enemies this time. When I think about it now, each one of them must also had a family, their loved ones and an idea they shared with their pals on the field."

"None of that mattered when they died. There is nothing left for the deceased to care about, so do you think we have the right to end their lives?"

"I… I don't know how to answer that…" Of course, Class rep wouldn't understand the heaviness of my message.

"What about you girls!? What do you all think about this!?" My yell pivoted around the hallway and startled the squad that was hidden very poorly by the corner.

"Waaaha…!"

"Miki-san, watch out!"

"Aaaha! Don't grab me!" A sense directly out of a comedy took place as the girls all fell down one by one out of their cover.

"Huh? You're all here too?! That was amazing, Takeru." Class rep was dumbfounded by how I discovered the secret audience. All I saw was their reflections in the window. Child's play, really.

"Sorry for interrupting you, Takeru-chan."

"Sorry."

"So then, anyone got an answer for me?" Having just disturbed out moment, the team all shock their heads with fear and worry glued to their faces.

"Ahh… then let me continue."

"I believe that we do, because it is our will that drove us to defeat theirs. Everyone one out there is fighting for an idea, whether it's to protect their family, their friends or to protect this world. And so are we."

"There is no right or wrong on the field, there's only the difference between the strong and the weak. Out there, everyone is equal. You gain the right to someone else's life the moment you defeat them. So remember that you are always fighting equally, your ideals are clashing against the ideals of others."

"…I see."

"How deep." Meiya and Ayamine took their chance to comment.

"Is that why you told us to have a good reason to fight? So we won't feel bad about killing our enemies?" The way Class rep worded my theme ticked me the wrong way.

"No, I don't care if you feel bad or good about killing. Feeling too bad will hamper your mission. Feeling too good turns you into our enemy, our real enemy. I want you to be able to kill and not regret it. You can't bring a weak mind into combat, that will only spell the death of you and your belief."

"Wow… Takeru-san is really knowledgeable!"

"He really knows a lot about everything!"

"I think I understand now… thank you, Takeru." Class rep sincerely thanked me for my guidance.

"Good! I wouldn't have told such a tale four more times anyway. Alright then! Let's go and check out our TSFs!" I led the way to the hanger with everyone accompanying me. We changed into our Fortified Suits en route.

 **Hanger**

"…Uwa! That smell… If we have to adjust the cockpits like this. I'm gonna suffocate." Mikoto complained about the combat paint that was applied to our units.

"Are you going to let them paint yours, Meiya?"

The black and white Fortified suit donned by Meiya along with the two weapons she carried by her waist was instantly eye-catching. In some ways, her look with the Type-00 suit exposed her figure even more beautifully than the trainee suit.

"I will, taking this Takemikazuchi into battle most likely will raise suspicions already. If I keep it purple, that will just cause many unnecessary problems." I thought for sure that Meiya would want to stand out and impress the world in the Takemikazuchi with the Shogun colour.

"I need to talk to you about this, actually. But that can wait." Meiya's head only tilted in confusion, but her focus shifted back to her purple fighter.

"But this paint does make the TSF harder to see!" Mikoto stated the obvious.

"Emm, which unit is yours, Takeru-san? I only count for Fubukis here. Sumika-san and Kasumi-san are also missing theirs." Tama just had a dysfunctional moment within her brain, that was what I hoped for anyway.

"Tama… your cat tail and cat bell looks great."

"Huh? Thanks… but where is your… Awwa, sorry Takeru-san. I forgot your rank." She was able to recover very quick though. I handed her some imaginary points for that.

The mechanics below us was yelling orders about the use of live rounds for the TSF.

"…Live rounds…" Ayamine must had reacted when she thought about the meaning behind it.

"You all heard my amazing speech earlier, right?" They nodded their heads in agreement.

"Good, I wouldn't have talked that much to Class rep alone. It would be a giant waste of time if she was the only one that heard it. You girls all know this, right. Have no regret on the battlefield, even if it pains you to take the life of another."

"Yes, sir." Their clear responses relieved me from the fear of not being prepared enough for combat. We stood around a bit longer until I was sure the Imperials have arrived.

"Alright! Meiya and me will head outside for a while. The rest of you, don't follow."

"Huh, Eh?" I grabbed Meiya's hand before an inquiry could be fired my way.

 **Front gate**

"Takeru, for what reason have you decided to take me along?"

"Just wait, and enjoy the standoff at the mean time." I Awaited for Tsukuyomi's presence. She would notice and approach us sooner or later.

"Still, having a coup when we have to fight the BETA… Japan really can't get it's crap together."

"Unfortunately, that is the truth we have to face today. Our objectives may be the same… but as long as we value different things, we will choose different method" Meiya spoke the philosophies that I shared.

"We cannot allow the BETA to gain victory. And yet, we also couldn't avoid infighting amongst the people. The human race will never know peace as long as people are free."

"Very educated, only a person with enough vision would be able to come to such a conclusion." Tsukuyomi led the three idiots and appeared from our side, her commendation was well appreciated.

"Thank you for your compliment, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi."

"So you are also capable of showing gratitude, Shirogane?" The insult she fired back only bounced off my arrogant personality.

"From time to time."

"Tsukuyomi… what are you doing!? If you know of Her Highness's peril, then why are you here!?" Meiya was upset by Tsukuyomi's attendance.

"Yes… if I may speak… guarding Meiya-sama is the task Her Highness has bestowed upon us."

"You fool! Do not speak such nonsense! You must know… what is happening in the Imperial capital at this very moment!" Dismay shown by Meiya only directed Tsukuyomi's cast downwards.

"I am fully aware of it. And that is precisely why I cannot leave you, Meiya-sama." Tsukuyomi calmly answered to Meiya.

"Do you fully understand the meaning of the wor—"

"Cease this, Meiya. You do know that if they're here, that means Her Highness asked for them directly, right?" I put an end to Meiya's frustration for Tsukuyomi not being at the capital.

"Ah… you are correct, Takeru…"

"How can the Honour Guards named by Her Highness abandon their position?" I took Tsukuyomi's side and convinced Meiya of reality.

"…It would be inconceivable for any of you to disobey her orders… I should know that full well, and yet… forgive me, Tsukuyomi."

"No, Meiya-sama. There is no need for you to apologize. I should be the one to lower my head." The argument between the bunch was short because it will get very boring if I didn't.

"How's Her Highness, Tsukuyomi? Is she safe?" My question was delivered even when I knew the answer better than anyone else.

"The Honour Guard 2nd Battalion and rebel forces are setting up opposing positions as we speak. For now, the rebels are facing away from the castle, so no weapons are being pointed toward Her Highness, but the number of troops encircling them continues to rise."

"So… she is safe for the time being?" Meiya was also concerned for her sister.

"Yes. The 2nd Battalion guarding her is the elite of the elite. You have nothing to worry about." Meiya finally let out her breathe after being guaranteed the safety of her other half.

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi, which Imperial Army unit is that?" I mentioned the TSFs surrounding us from all sides.

"It probably came from the Shinetsu Final Defence Line." It only made sense for the closet unit to be sent to play prison guard with us.

"How about the capital?"

"I have heard that most of the forces for retaking the capital will be gathered from the Secondary Defence Line and the Kantou Final Defence Line." As excepted, the defence lines were pretty much open for taking at this point.

"Truly unfortunate, for this sovereignty struggle to place itself as of now…"

"Your speech pattern indeed resembles that of a well-educated man. Tell me, what is your opinion of this matter?" Out of all things, the use of my pronouns weren't on any list for me to watch out for. And Tsukuyomi picked up that difference with wit.

"I used to think of it as nothing but a waste of time. But then I understood that no matter the situation, a fight for power cannot be avoided. Have I not said something among these lines earlier?" I reminded her of my comment that got me praise from Tsukuyomi.

"Indeed, we cannot be ready to fight against our invaders if we are fighting within ourselves." The old antagonism that Tsukuyomi used to manifest against me was gone. I didn't know if that's because some new information she dug up on me, but she probably trusted Meiya's judgment.

"If you are all to remain here, what will the Honour Guard do?"

"That is…" Tsukuyomi casted her stare toward me. She must have difficulties with responding with an UN Eishi here.

"…What? Are you implying Takeru would leak the information?" Meiya had taken the offence in my place.

"No, Meiya-sama. I trust your judgment in this man. The Imperial Household Department is within the Imperial Palace itself, and is in good condition. Moreover, the Honour Guard has yet to lose control of the area."

"What the ringleader said about not wanting to harm Her Highness seems to be true for now. There have been a few attempts to infiltrate the palace but none has returned with success." Even Tsukuyomi wasn't informed of the whole picture.

"Have any civilians in the capital been harmed?"

"No… not yet." Meiya's next question received a straight answer.

"However, as I have previously stated the forces encircling the Palace are growing in number. We cannot make any assumptions. The rebel forces ought to seek Her Highness's approval, as that is the only way they can prove their cause just."

"Her Highness must be conflicted as of now, she won't agree to their terms so soon." I added my own estimation which was common with the both of them.

"However, the more time passes, the more prepared the Imperial Army becomes… and the American Army is poised to intervene." Meiya's view was also factual.

"In preparation for possible fighting in the capital. The Honour Guard garrisons scattered in and around the capital are gathering at the Imperial Palace. There has been no significant difficulty as of yet." The battle will commence eventually, that is something not even I could have stopped.

"Then independent units are still tasked with protecting relatives of the Shogun?"

"That is correct." Tsukuyomi confirmed my statement about her role during this time.

"Understood. I give you my thanks… you may leave now."

"Yes… do not hesitate to summon me if anything happens… and your new sidearms are very fitting as well." Admiration came from Tsukuyomi to Meiya's new sword before she returned to her post.

"Tsukuyomi… I pray that fortune favour your venture." I could only hope that Meiya's longing reached Tsukuyomi of the Honour Guard.

"Now's the time for me to bring up the earlier subject, Meiya."

"Do you mean that of the paint for my TSF?" Meiya recalled the earlier topic that I brought up.

"Yeah, I'm going to tell you the operation that we will be participating in about ten hours."

"So we really will be deployed… are you sure it is wise to for such information to become my knowledge?" I affirmed silently with a strong gaze. Meiya pondered for a while and nodded as a sign for me to enlighten her.

"Our mission will be to retrieve a vital package that will be delivered from the capital. I can't announce the details but I know for a fact that combat will presumably take place." Meiya's expression showed astonishment.

"Then we will really be fighting against others… is that inevitable?" I nodded my head without a word. Meiya's grin deepened even more that before.

"Your TSF that has the colour of the Shogun, it will bring attention to it the second we encounter any hostiles. However, it would be so much more beneficial if you are willing to keep the colour."

My request to Meiya was outrageous. Asking her to not repaint it was the same as drawing a giant target onto her back.

"Takeru, is that an order?" Meiya wasn't even fazed by my demand.

"No, it never will be. I'm essentially asking you to be bait, in case we encounter any enemies. While there is a great strategic advantage behind this. You have every right to refuse." I made my foolish intention very clear for her. Meiya shut her eyes and debated within her mind.

"Then I will not repaint my unit, Takeru. If such a thing can benefit the squad and the objective. I have no complaints." Meiya firmly stated her resolution.

"Meiya… I'm indebted to you for this. Thank you."

"That is far from the truth, Takeru. You are the one that I might never be able to repay." Meiya earnestly thanked me for using her as a lure.

"My vow to you. This will be when you can witness my resolve."

"…Thank you, Takeru." My hand motion mention for us to return.

"I'm sure that she would also be glad to see you…" I mumbled to myself just inaudible enough for Meiya to barely pick up the remark.

"She? What are you talking about, Takeru!?" Meiya twitched when I stated a sensitive term.

"Let's go back now. It's getting cold out here." I dismissed her question and headed back. Meiya soon followed when she realized that I wouldn't expose anything else.

 **Author's note**

I really got to stop ending at non date change points. It pisses me off to no end.

The coup is taking place so soon! I'm pretty excited to reveal all the plans, schemes and stuff. Or there could just be nothing hidden and the story will just continue with a two day time skip! (Don't worry, I won't do that… maybe.)

Also, I still don't own Muv-Luv or any of its characters, being a while since I lasted said this.

As for the future, I think I'll add a Total Eclipse arc before Sadogashima. But due to Total Eclipse's anime, which ended before the Alternative begins. I'll have to use VN material for what I'll be writing. Because since the VN isn't translated, I could only get limited information from forum and wikis. So if anyone who played the VN and have a pretty good idea as to all the events. Please PM me, I urgently need your help with the timeline and other details. Thank you very much.

And to everyone who read my story and review, favourite and follow, all that stuff. Thank you for your support and please continue to do so.

As always, proofreading done by chad001


	11. Is it wrong to pick up girls in a war?

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:40 PM**

 **Classroom**

"Alright, squad! Assemble in the hanger. They need your help with adjusting the OS to fix the problem of the auto corrections not getting rid of the firearm control errors. Good thing we have the new OS early, or it's just be even more pain in the ass."

After half an hour of configuring settings and whatnot for my squad's TSFs. I returned to grab their asses for the final adjustment. When I entered, I thought I accidently walked in on a funeral thanks to the atmosphere. But it was just the squad being depressed, can't be having this now, can we?

"Takeru, couldn't you have called us for this sooner?" The first to respond to my existence was Class rep. Followed by everyone else in my team.

"I could, Cadet Sakaki. But I was sleeping in my room." Some extra sass was in demand by Class rep from her attitude.

"Are you not too relaxed as our squad leader?"

"That's right! Takeru is always so chilled all the time!" A new vocabulary from Mikoto.

"That's crazy, Meiya! As your punishment for suggesting such an idea, you'll bring me a cup of coffee from the PX! …Two sugar and three milk, please." Meiya did the classic disappointed face-palm-while-laughing technique to put me to shame.

"Takeru-chan is such a slave driver… two sugar and three milk, right? I go get you a cup so don't order others around!" Sumika brought up a pleasant proposal.

"It is fine! I will go fetch Takeru's beverage, you can just head to the hanger, Sumika."

"Eh? But don't you also have to adjust your OS? Mine is already finished so you can go ahead!" My interest was lost the moment another catfight began.

"Here, Takeru-san. Two sugar and three milk." Sneaking up on me was Kasumi, holding a paper cup with a nice lid. I had no clue as to when she found the time to reach the PX, get my drink and come back. But coffee is coffee no matter who delivers it.

"Good girl, thanks Kasumi."

"You're welcome." I patted her head stylishly with the bottom of my cup.

"Agaaa… it's hot."

"Yeah, I noticed too." After that, we just talked in riddles for another few minutes, making no progress on anything.

"Alright enough. You girls still got your OS to fix and we still have time so get going now, I'll grab Ayamine." I rushed the squad out of the class and went to meet Ayamine on the balcony.

"Hey, Ayamine. They need you in the hanger, fixing your OS and stuff." Her reply was the silence that remained under the cold winter sky.

"Come on, let's go."

"What?" Ayamine played dumb and ignored my order.

"You deaf or something? We need to rewrite the OS."

"Something…" And once again, we were going nowhere.

"…I don't want to deal with this. It's about your letters, right?"

"…" Ayamine refused to give me a clear answer no matter what I said.

"…People should do what they can for their country. And the country should do what it can for its people." The quote from her father finally got a reaction out of the inexpressive girl.

"…How do you?"

"Lieutenant-General Ayamine Shuukaku. He disobeyed direct order to defend retreating forces during the evacuation of Gwangju in favour of protecting civilians. As the result, the retreat turned to a one-sided massacre where the UN lost a lot of soldiers and equipment."

"The Far East Defence Line and the UN wanted his head which the Imperials had to placate him as a traitor and a coward. That marked the last days of your father before he was executed for desertion." I debriefed Ayamine about the past of her old man.

"…Then you know."

"There is also Sagiri Naoya, a close friend and subordinate of your father. Who is currently leading the rebellion group." There was no use hiding any information that Ayamine already knew. I just needed to get her together.

"You understood the letter…" Ayamine faced me for the first time during our discussion.

"Of course I did. Do I look like an imbecile who can't even decrypt a letter? He sent you all those because he regretted not being able to help your father."

"If you know all this… then why are you still asking me?" Ayamine only stared at me, unsure of my intentions.

"Because I don't give a shit about what happened in your past. You take those letters and shove them up your ass or whatever, I don't care. But I can't have a member of my team be moping over there about how she should have done something else."

"You can't change history, Ayamine. Who gives a crap about letters that don't even mean anything?"

"…You make it sound like you understand me so well, Takeru. But only if I opened then sooner…" Our other melee expert was still grieving over the past that she would have never been able to change.

"Ayamine… you said you trust me, right? I still remember, that time on the rooftop."

"…I did." Ayamine too, didn't forget about the faith she had in me.

"I couldn't give you an answer that time, now I can. I also trust you, Ayamine. You're a member of my squad, you're my irreplaceable teammate. That means I need you to watch my back out there, you can't be lamenting over what you could've done. There is no point. Do you have a reason to fight?"

I presumed that she regretted not seeing the schemes of her ex-fiancé sooner. But even if she did, her words as a cadet and the need to verify the letters will not let her case be taken seriously.

"Takeru… I do. I also have a reason to fight." Her stare was directly aimed at me. The feeling and affection behind her gaze would be difficult even for a dumbass to miss.

"Then the past won't matter anymore. No matter what happens. I believe that you will doubt yourself no longer."

"Can you say it… say it one more time?" I didn't need her to clarify the meaning of her words this time.

"Ayamine, I trust you with my life. I understand that now is a challenging time, but I also know that you'll pull through and you won't turn your back on me and the rest of the squad."

"…Thanks… I also trust you, Takeru. You'll lead us no matter what happens, right?"

"Of course, I am the most certain person you'll ever meet."

"Then I'll be loyal to you as well, my captain." We shared an embrace in silence as words were not necessary any longer.

 **06:30 PM**

 **Briefing room**

The squad came back from adjusting their TSFs and assembled in the briefing room. I took the spot on the stand to explain the situation for the team.

"So here's the story, the provisional government in Sendai has officially accepted UN military aid. The Undersecretary was able to convince the provisional government, ten minutes ago was when the news was officially announced."

I wouldn't say the squad was shocked by the revelation, they should have expected that eventually, the government will give up resisting the UN and the Americans whether we wanted it or not.

"Now that we took over this mess, Her Highness's safety will be the top priority in the next operation. Of course, the coup guys didn't like that fact and are calling the government traitors and stuff. But we don't really care about that political nonsense. Unless someone here wants to support the rebels."

The squad all pasted this humourless look over their faces as to disprove my accusation.

"Moving on, The American 7th Fleet is en route to Tokyo Bay from the Sagami Bay. The 132 TSF Armoured Battalion, are going to be sent out to the capital when they are ready."

"The 1st TSF Armoured Battalion and 5th Airborne Support Battalion are already deployed. The 4th and 5th TSF Armoured Battalions and the 2nd Airborne Support Battalion are preparing to deploy as well… Marimo-chan, take over. I'm thirsty."

With a wordless sigh, Marimo-chan got pulled onto the stage by me while I caught a bottle from Sumika.

"Continuing on, the 3rd TSF Armoured Battalion is preparing to be deployed to the Secondary Defensive Line, since the Imperial Army's troop withdrawals have left it under-defended."

"All other units are to remain on standby while being on the lookout for enemy flanking maneuver. In addition, the 3rd TSF Armoured Battalion is scheduled to deploy at 19:40 hours. Our squad will be deployed at the same and tasked with a special mission."

This time was when the squad was unprepared for the bombshell. But they improved their feedback thanks to my warning earlier. I again took over the speaking role to explain our mission.

"After a bunch of random bullshit that none of you will comprehend. We are getting deployed to Tougashima Fortress. The area of operation will be the south eastern shore of Ashinoko. So we get to take a paid vacation to the Shogun's summer home, in giant robots."

"1st Lt. Shirogane! Please take the briefing seriously!" Marimo-chan called me out for making one joke too many.

"Hehe, moving on. The Imperial Honour Guard's 19th Independent Guard Unit stationed here will be coming with us. Let's see… what else… oh, right. The Imperial Army over there are from Atsugi Base, if they give you girls shit for anything, just ignore them. With the situation around Her Highness still unclear, many Imperial Army soldiers are mostly pissed off."

I felt that my update was very unprofessional. But as the highest ranking officer here, no one can point it out to me.

"I have a question… if they challenge us with real weapons or outright attack us, would we be allowed to defend ourselves? This plan was agreed upon by the UN and the provisional government, it's unsanctioned by Her Highness. The Imperial Army may consider us to be the aggressors."

Class rep was worried over our treatment and the possibility of combat against the Imperials stationed there.

"That mostly likely won't happen. I don't think anyone in the Imperial Army is stupid enough to open fire on UN Eishis that intervened with proper procedure. They would have to fight us and fight themselves if something outrageous like that takes place." Class rep was satisfied was my retort and she settled back down.

"Alright, here is the most essential part. Our mission is to recover a highly classified package that will be sent from the capital. In fact, it's so classified that even I don't know the content."

"We also don't have a detailed method of recognizing said package. The Professor said that we'll know it when we see it. And the final icing on this damn cake will be that we don't even know when the drop will be made. We are ordered to gather at the fortress until further notice."

This part of the operation was added on thanks to Yuuko-sensei, I couldn't confess the real purpose of this mission. Then again, I technically didn't lie in the assignment description.

"Marimo-chan, please continue the outline of the planned course." I got lazy again so I just dragged Marimo-chan to finish the explanation.

"Yes, sir. At 1940 hours, we'll travel North along the…" My attention span counted down to zero when the illustrations of the mission details were given. In summary, we will be travelling to Tougashima Fortress by piloting our TSFs.

"—finally, since we may end up in real combat during this mission, I will join you with my TSF. And due to our recent change of squad leader and commanding officers, we're also changing our callsigns for this operation."

"We will be dividing into two fireteams. The first fireteam will be callsign Archer, with 2nd Lt. Kagami as the leader, callsign Archer 1. The rest of its member will be Ayamine, Archer 2, Yoroi, 3 and Tamase, 4."

"The second fireteam will be callsign Stinger, led by 2nd Lt. Yashiro, callsign Stinger 1. Together with me, Stinger 2, Mitsurugi, 3 and Sakaki, 4."

"1st Lt. Shirogane will command both teams directly along with the support vehicles. His callsign will be Specter 1"

I took over for Marimo-chan one last time to finish the session. Those names were requested by me, because reading a vocable with a number was less work than five numbers.

"Thank you, Marimo-chan. I'm a naturally lazy person, so all reports will be directed to your fireteam leader. You're permitted to open an encrypted with me in case of emergency."

"That's it for the Mission overview. Go back and make any final adjustments you need to your units then form up in the hanger. I hope all of you have already realized your purpose for fighting. You're dismissed." I released the squad and waved off their salute yet again.

 **Hanger**

"Takeru-san! Are you done with your configurations?" Tama popped out of thin air behind me, her tail and bell were no longer equipped, unfortunately.

"Yep, there really isn't anything for me to change." Being the first out of my TSF after I only checked the basic controls and organization of commands.

"How's yours, Tama?"

"Mine's good as well, nothing really changed since we have being using the new OS for so long now." Tama's claim was without false.

"The XM3 should really increase our capabilities even if we're a training squad."

"When did you first join the military, Takeru-san?" I considered Tama's question for a while before coming to the deduction that there was no good way to answer.

"That's classified, sorry Tama. Can't tell you everything." The lazy excuse was utilized once more.

"1st Lt. Shirogane, is it?" One of the mechanics approved me with a PDA in hand.

"You got your guy right here, what is it?"

"I have a validation here that I need you to confirm." He passed me the tablet and the screen flashed to unveiled Kasumi's request for additional arms to her Mount Pylon system.

"This is going to take a lot of time to implement, will it be ready for the mission?"

"Yes, sir. It wasn't removed after the last deployment. We just need to reaffirm with you, it only take minutes to dismantle." For a second, I was worried that the attachments wouldn't make it in time.

"Yeah, she got my permission for this modification. Anything else?" I clicked around the tablet until it made my approvement official.

"No, sir. Thank you for your time." The mechanic ran back to his task.

"Why does Kasumi-san want extra arms?" Tama was curious as to why Kasumi ordered more Mount Pylon.

"If we end up engaging other units, you'll see. Her fighting style is very unique."

"Really? Does the Type-94 operate differently than our Fubukis?"

"That's… not the case. It's more like Kasumi's personality. Having eight guns are better than four, somehow. You should ask her later about that if we don't see action." Gazing toward my Type-94 Shiranui outfitted with basic gear for combatants with no assigned roles. A sword, a gun and two daggers were all I was provided.

"But still, I wish I one day can also pilot a Shiranui."

"That's just a matter of time, all three of us started with Fubukis before reaching the rank of Lieutenants. It's nothing special." That was another lie. Sumika's first frame was a giant fortress, her second frame was an even larger, giant fortress.

"Okay… Takeru-san really is a true Eishi, just like your guards."

"Tama… Why does everyone keep calling my gua— nevermind. Yeah, we are all real Eishis. Sorry that we had to hide it until now." Her mention of my rank caused me to feel guilty for deceiving them.

"It's okay, Takeru-san. I'm sure no one else is upset about this. We trust you to tell us your stories one day, right?"

"Yeah, of course. I promise to disclose everything when the time is right. So the all of you must be there when the time comes."

"Yeah! We'll all be there that day, Takeru-san." I ambiguously promised the future with Tama.

—

"You're going to pilot this, Meiya?"

"Are you not the one who persuaded me into riding it, Takeru?" We stood in front of the purple Type-00, Meiya's personal unit.

"I am, that why I wanted to make sure that you will pilot it to the end."

"Of course I will. I need this to protect what I believe in. The option to regret my decision is no longer available." With a mind set on her goal, Meiya will hesitate no longer.

"In our upcoming battle, your unit should prove to be a very vital piece. I apologize for increasing your risk with my demand." I felt responsible for endangering Meiya with forcing her to pilot a purple Takemikazuchi.

"Do not worry, Takeru. I decided for myself that I am willing to take this change. You will be there to protect us, will you not?"

"All the time, Meiya." I guaranteed Meiya's safety as long as I breathe this air.

—

"Owie!" Mikoto's head bumped my pocket at the wrong angle when I descended some stairs across from her.

"Sorry, you okay?"

"I'm fine, but what're you carrying that is this hard?"

"Oh, this? Just a souvenir." Without putting my brain to its supposed task, I pulled out the strange doll from Yoroi by instinct.

"Emm… this doll looks familiar. Ah! I saw this before! My dad got me the same doll when he visited last time!"

"Really? I got this from your father too when I ran into him by the professor's office. He doesn't have a lot of imagination, does he?" My half insult brought Mikoto a good laugh.

"Haha, he really doesn't! He never changes, always so whimsical and incomprehensible."

"Is that just like how you are?"

"And because he works for a government subcontractor, he kept running all over the world. He never thinks twice about anything, opting to ran headfirst into dangerous places…" Exhibit A can be seen right here, ladies and gentlemen.

"That might be true, but even from my short meeting with him. I know that he is a responsible man who, while odd at times, will never be a man that abandons what is most important to him."

Yoroi won't abandon anything without my permission, and my permission will never be given.

"I believe that as well, he's a strange kind of romanticist, so sometimes he loses sight of everything else. But my dad has always be a reliable person, no matter what happens."

"And he will always be like that."

"Yeah, you're right!"

—

"Alright squad, we will be moving out after I finish making this grand speech, so listen up." The team gathered around me in the hanger.

"I know that this will be your first deployment, all of you are probably tense from it. That's fine, being nervous shows that you understand the severity of this operation."

"So there is no need for your blood pressure to give you a heart attack here. Calm down, take things easy and don't be discouraged to communicate with others. Being serious doesn't mean you have to be stiff, got it? Let's go!"

"Yes, sir!" I gave what could be seen as a motivational speech before we departed.

 **09:40 PM**

 **New Hakone road ruins**

"—Specter 1 to Archer 1 and Stinger 1. The Reconnaissance teams have reported that there is no sign of enemies in the operation area. We'll proceed as planned, through Mt. Byoubu to the old checking station ruins."

"Once we secured Tougashima peninsula, Archer and Stinger flights will move to their assigned positions. Stinger 2 will manage the command post at the old checking station ruins with the support vehicles since I prefer field work instead. Last thing, make sure that you check your data links are receiving the latest reconnaissance information, Specter 1 out."

"—Archer 1, copy."

"—Stinger 1, copy." The faces of the two team leaders popped up suddenly and then disappeared just as fast.

"Everyone! Do you think we can go one of the hot springs here? Maybe after the operation is over." Sumika was trying to disperse this dark mood with her energetic personality. I remembered that I also said something similar during the first loop as well.

"That was a thing, huh? My experiences with hot springs were terrible. I kept getting beat up by some very violent girls that went with me… it's all your fault, Archer 1."

"What! Taker— everyone was all just trying to be nice to you, Specter 1!" The way we held our ridiculous conversation over the public channel, using the callsigns and everything, it was just plain dumb.

"You serious? What about the time when you sent that puck to my face? Was that a nice time? Also, when everyone got drunk of their asses and couldn't commute normally, those times… I still dream about them."

"—Stinger 4 to Specter 1. Please, 1st Lt. Takeru. Can you please not discuss your personal experiences on a mission?" Class rep had enough of our chitchat and spoke up.

"Hehe, Stinger 4, just relax and enjoy the—" An update of the situation from the capital interrupted my sentence.

"Specter 1 to all units, update. Fighting has broken out in the capital." The message that was sent from Headquarters turned out to be the unwelcoming news just as I predicted.

"It's unverified, but it seems some foot soldier fired at the Honour Guard in the Imperial Palace. The Honour Guard 2nd Regiment responded with full force against the rebels. Capt. Sagiri ordered a ceasefire, but couldn't get a hold of the situation."

"Eh? They started shooting? Over one person firing?" Sumika hindered my report with her obvious comment.

"Shut up, Archer 1! Let me finish. Anyway, the 1st TSF Armoured Battalion along with the American 117th TSF Armoured Battalion are landing an assault force at Shinagawa Pier. They're fighting the hostile forces as of now. The Imperial Army's assault forces started invading the capital from Saitama Prefecture."

"Nevertheless, our mission is still the same. Everyone, keep all channels open. We'll operate as separate teams and continue the mission as planned— Specter 1 out."

"Archer 1, copy."

"Stinger 1, copy." My overview of the situation didn't brighten up anyone's day.

The rest of the journey was paced with some insignificant chitchats in between until we reached our destination.

 **10:20 PM**

 **Tougashima Fortress**

"It has finally started snowing…"

"Yeah, yeah it did." Meiya's comms connected with mine when she decided to form a conversation with me.

"Land under BETA control is said to be thoroughly cleansed of nature… and yet it seems they did not even touch this part of the mountains." We talked further until the topic reached the tale of the Honour Guard 24th Regiment and how they defended this fortress for months before the mainland was retaken.

"However… no matter how much the Honour Guard wishes to protect the Shogun, choosing to stay for the sole purpose of protecting this building… is hard to believe. Besides… I cannot imagine Her Highness would wish them to do such a thing."

Meiya wasn't informed of the secret passage way that led from the Imperial palace to here. Hence, her wandering as to why the Honour Guard stayed here for months.

"Alright, Archer 1. I'm gonna open an encrypted channel here. Take over for me."

"Huh? Alright, but don't talk about any secrets, okay?" I didn't have the time to criticize Sumika's lack of logical thinking before the encrypted channel opened.

"Takeru, I'm starting to think you are abusing your power as the commander of this squad…" My call was closed off to everyone except for Meiya.

"Nonsense, Meiya. What else can I do with power other than use it? But this is not the point. I want to ask you something" She already knew my reason for being here, I was just hoped to confirm hers.

"Meiya, what do you think about the current government?" The belief between her and Sagiri was not on the opposite ends. But as the sister of the Shogun, I wished for her opinion before I proceed with my own agenda.

"It's… a difficult topic. After Japan lost in the war, we signed treaties that made us dependent on America. Our land was occupied and trampled by their armies… after that, the cold war. And the BETA… when we lost all those lives, with over half of our land taken, something prevented Japan from becoming forever fearful… I believe you understand why, Takeru."

"The country is within the people's hearts, and their country is formed by the Shogun's family." I understood the pride of this nation, Japan's patriotism was strong. Too strong for them to see the alternatives.

"Yes… but the Beta defeated us, and we had no choice but to turn the UN Army for help. Our government changed because of that. Ever since we retook the mainland, strengthened relations with the UN, and that became basic national policy. It has become normal to use excessive and unjustified methods, and the government and the military are becoming less and less what they are meant to be…"

"Our government does not care about the population and only sees the Shogun as a nuisance. The people that view their own benefit as more important than the country's, are leading this country." Meiya agreed with me on my added points.

"The rebel forces probably hope… to save their country and their Shogun. People who think so caused this coup. The Imperial government as it is now… I do not think it is good for this country." I finally exposed Meiya's true ideas. My guess about her wish was perfectly accurate. And I shall try to grant it, for the both of us.

"Meiya, my goal is to save this world. When I first started, I didn't care about how the Japanese people felt. Saving this world was much more important. However sometime down the line, I realized something."

"If a country couldn't get itself together and fight against the BETA, than how could that country be able to defeat the invaders? I still don't care about all the political stuff, but I know that the current government does not understand how to care for its people and fight the aliens."

"If I am allowed to say so, I also believe your view to be correct." An agreement was reached without a hitch.

"Say, Meiya. If you have the option to, would you change this country's government?"

"…Yes, I would." That was enough to clear me of any doubt.

"May I ask as to why you asked me this?" A question was shot my way from our resident samurai.

"I held my own ideal through all this time. I just couldn't find the right method to act upon it. But if it is for you, then that is more than enough motive for me." Having Meiya as rationale made my task so much easier to swallow.

"What are you planning, Takeru?"

"Would you stop asking if I say it's classified?" Worth a try, if nothing else.

"I will, but my curiosity will not diminish." It was only logical for Meiya to be intrigued.

"Then let's go with that, sorry I can't tell you more."

"That is fine. Is another question equitable?" Meiya still had other unsolved uncertainties.

"Sure."

"I understand that you place a great importance upon my life. May I ask what the reason behind that is?" The opinion that swayed me from Meiya must have charmed her.

"Let me think, how should I say this… you don't know this. But I have met you a long time ago. It's strange, really. My feelings for you are beyond that of a mere friend, you're just so much more than that."

"…Takeru, is it fine for me to decipher the meaning behind those words as I see fit?" If she saw that as a confession, then she would be correct.

"Yes, feel free." The next moment, a clean, genuine smile blushed across her face with a tainted backdrop from her cheeks flourishing.

"…Then know that… I also view you as more than simply an associate of mine."

"…Thank you, Meiya. And as you know. I promised that I'll never betray any of you. I just realized a new way of moulding this situation." Having just exchanged our confessions. It was awkward to continue the old topic.

"…Ah, I understand. I also promised to always be here to support you. Please, if you really have the power to save this country, I only ask that you use it wisely."

"—Takeru-chan! Anything going on over by you?" Sumika's dumb face ruined our moment of association. I switched back to the public channel to report to her.

"Nada, nothing going on over here. I'm gonna get back to Meiya now."

"Alright, Takeru-chan. Take good care of her for me, since I'm not smart enough to understand all this complicated things. You will make sure that nothing will go wrong, right?" Sumika was honestly concerned for the wellbeing of her friends. She might not understand every detail, but her emotions weren't wasted on caring about others.

"That's the plan, got to go now."

"Do your best, Takeru-chan!" I went back to the encrypted channel and was only greeted by a signal less screen with the noise of the wind.

I climbed out of my cockpit as well to spot her across the distance, standing proudly above her Takemikazuchi. Placing one hand on her katana and the other upon the wakizashi that was gifted. Meiya's windswept hair only served to add to her majestic look.

With eyes that focused on her land, pondering her own view on the Japan, the world and maybe even herself, Meiya wad deep in thought on many matter of things.

"Meiya, I know you can hear me. I just want to tell you that your passion for this country and your own blood isn't a weakness, it's the opposite. When we have something to protect, we become stronger. Especially when that thing is the most precious to ourselves."

"Takeru… you really do know everything… such strength, from time to time I envy you greatly." There not a single good point about me worth being jealous over, but maybe others could still see the light I had long lost.

"That's not the case. We are here now, so that means we can choose. Meiya, I chose to protect you and everyone else in our squad, which includes the dreams they see and the wishes they hold." I was about to turned off the encrypted channel and go back inside to the warmth that is my cockpit.

"Oh, right. One last time, this is actually the subject I wanted to discuss from the beginning…"

 **01:50 AM**

"Take… Tim… Takeru-san… please wake up." Tama brought my thoughts away from the comfy dream world back to the cruel reality.

"Tama… what is it? Shouldn't happy-go-lucky over there be covering for me?" I determined to punish Sumika later for not taking care of whatever was happening.

"It's not that, your shift's in fifteen minutes." The cat girl reminded me of my duty. She was lacking her usual energy as the mascot of our unit.

"Tama, I want you to know that your dad did nothing wrong in this."

"Ah… yes…" Startled by my sudden moment, Tama forced a smile onto her face.

"This conflict isn't something that can be avoided. I believe that your father followed his ideals and worked for the benefit of Japan. You too, are currently here because you want to help this country. Be proud of that." My lecture cheered up Tama considerably and she regained her usual energy.

"Eheheh… Thanks, Takeru-san."

"And now that I missed my chance to force the work onto Marimo-chan for this shift…" Everything was planned out so far, I had Marimo-chan substitute for me so I can meet up with that person.

"Takeru-san, you really shouldn't address the Sergeant by her name."

"It's fine, Tama. As the superior here, I can do whatever I want." Tama only sighed at my remark.

"Takeru-san… that's abusing your authority."

"Hahaha! We're fine… anyway, let's swap." I distracted her from the subject of the questionable use of my rank.

"Okay… Archer 4, Tamase, entering standby at 02:02 hours."

"Roger."

—

"This is Specter 1 to Archer 1. I'm gonna head out and get some fresh air, copy?" My limbs were stretched with limited freedom before Sumika was informed about my outing.

"Copy that, Specter 1. Just don't take too long, okay, Takeru-chan? And watch yourself, don't catch a cold either!" The callsign was completely pointless if she just addresses my name anyway.

"Thanks, Archer 1. Departing now." Setting my Shiranui in a kneeing posture, I jumped out of the cockpit with and 10/10 in style points.

I stood below the cold show as it drifted wildly under the blue sky, the frosty days only made me wish for a quick smoke. However I disregarded the idea just as swiftly, my promise with Sumika wasn't something that I could take lightly.

After I ran around the place and rechecked the safety of my pistol. The footsteps of Yuuhi and her grandma like person finally was close enough for me to perceive as well.

"Freeze. Put your hands behind your head… and turn slowly toward me…" I played by the script only to pretend like I had no clue to their true identity.

"Wha! —how dare you point a gun at us!" The Grand Chamberlain's reaction was just too priceless. She demanded me to lower my weapon when herself was unarmed. It gave me this strange urge to shoot somebody here just to observe her response.

"Please identify yourselves. I'm part of the UN Army and our mission is to retrieve a certain package from this location. So please show me some form of identification"

"The UN Army? That means you are not in the Imperial Army!" Yeah, no shit.

"—Archer 1 to Specter 1! We have an emergency situation here! I don't understand what the people are talking about!" The idiot Sumika couldn't handle any alterations to the status quo, not like I expected her to.

"—Switch with Stinger 2, let her report to me. Archer 4, Hold your position by me. Archer 2, Stinger 3 fall back to the command post." I elected not to inform them of my current situation just yet.

"—Copy that!" The engines of their TSFs were just faint enough for me to hear over the radio.

"Identify yourself this ins—! That is…" The Takemikazuchi was spotted by the Grand Chamberlain, which also served to pause her sentence.

"—please step aside. This man is most likely here to pick us up." Yuuhi finally stepped into the light. I was granted her elegant features from head to toe, the twin sister of Meiya really appeared to be identical. Yuuhi still donned her white winter jacket with a thick scarf of the same colour.

"You're… Your Highness. I apologize for that encounter." I withdrew my sidearm and slightly bowed to Yuuhi, creating a bad first impression here would be amateurish for a time traveller.

"So you do recognize Her Highness! How could you think of pointing a weapon in this direction!" The Grand Chamberlain was getting on my nerves, but I had to deal with the other man first.

"I only just saw Her Highness a second ago. And Section Chief Yoroi, please don't attempt to sneak up on me. I get very trigger happy if taken by surprise." Yoroi Sakon showed himself as well once I called out his name to the wild.

"Very impressive, Shirogane Takeru. I thought my stealth was perfect too."

"That doesn't really apply to me, Yoroi Sakon-san." Some very unusual greetings were exchanged, as always.

"Still, for you of all people to be waiting here… well, I suppose I should thank Professor Kouzuki."

"Thank her indeed, I'm a busy man you know? However, if it's for the Shogun, then that changes everything." No credit should go to Yuuko-sensei, I recommended for my squad to take over this case from the beginning.

"Yoroi… are you acquainted with this one?"

"Yes. He's called Shirogane… he is very much a gentleman if I do say so myself. Although he's also somewhat strange."

Some assistance was passed to me from Yoroi, I knew treating him with respect will reap me benefit in the long run. But the strange remarked ruined everything, just like what Yoroi enjoyed doing.

"A man that you approve of is rare, Yoroi. Shirogane, are you and your unit here to guard us?" Yuuhi addressed me, asking for my purpose.

"I believe so, Your Highness. We were instructed to retrieve a specific package from the Tougashima Fortress. Although I wasn't imagining it would be the Your Highness herself."

"That's right… Shirogane Takeru, where's your HQ?"

"It's in the Odawara West Interchange ruins. And unfortunately, the command post is by the old checking station." The news was disadvantageous to Yuuhi's goal, but they needed to be made known nonetheless.

"…Hmmm… my apologies, Your Highness, but please go with this man. He may not be the best escort, but his skills are very unique."

"I understand… I shall impose upon this 'Shirogane'" Yuuhi accepted Yoroi's suggestion easily. Some disagreement was shown by the Grand Chamberlain, but she couldn't do anything to halt it.

"Is it possible to have Her Highness join you in your TSF cockpit?"

"Yeah, probably… but are you sure this is wise, Section Chief Yoroi?" I questioned his request even when I knew it was the only option.

"In this situation, I think a TSF cockpit is about the safest place imaginable, particularly yours. Wouldn't you agree, Shirogane Takeru?" I had no clue if this man knew of my piloting skills. But I was not a person to turn down a compliment.

"That's true. Within my TSF is perhaps the safest location available right now." Some early boast was put in play by me.

"Your Highness, is that alright?"

"Yes, I trust your decision." Again, Yuuhi presented no divergence.

"It would be best to take her with you to Yokohama Base… Grand Chamberlain, you should go to the command vehicle."

"I understand. Shirogane… protect Her Highness, understand?" The Grand Chamberlain ordered for me to take good care of Yuuhi.

"Of course."

"Yoroi, what will you do?"

"Your Highness, I have one other job left to perform… so I will be taking my leave for a while. Shirogane Takeru, take care of Her Highness." The duty of the Shogun's protection befell upon me.

"Of course, Section Chief. Look after yourself too." I gave him a nod that her responded in kind.

"Yoroi, I am greatly indebted to you… may fortune favour your mission."

"Thank you very much."

"I do not wish… for any more of my retainers to perish. Please, take care." The death of many of Yuuhi's followers already caused her a great deal of grief.

"…Those who fell and those who cut them down are all loyal servants of yours, so Your Highness must no doubt be in great pain… this affair is nothing more than young men and women who lamented the nation's troubles but were unable to remain still and rose up to fix them."

"Their passion for justice to be served within this country isn't a will that is difficult to comprehend. However, the method of which can be used to help the country is challenging to understand." My own factor was added to Yoroi's statement. Yuuhi said nothing, but her eyes clearly understood the points.

"Even if they chose the wrong path, as long as young people like them exist… Japan has not yet been abandoned. Their effort to eradicate the parasites will allow Japan to reawaken. That's what I believe."

"Will that truly… come to pass?" The bright future for Japan was a common wish among its people.

"Rest easy, Your Highness. The Empire will surely be reawakened in the hearts of the people. However, further conflict would not be desirable."

"Yes." The current situation must be stopped was the view that everyone agreed on.

"I will return to capital at once, and do what little I can to bring the situation under control."

"I would be grateful." My comms abruptly received signal from Marimo-chan as she briefed me about the updates from the capital. I half-hearted listened as I already knew what she spoke to report.

"Your Highness, I just received latest new that your escape was leaked. The coup d'état, Imperial Honour Guard and UN forces are all moving to various abandoned bases and fortification in the area—" I informed the group about the revised information.

"…Just as we planned. Though it would've been perfect if the rebels hadn't started fighting at the Imperial Palace." The plan was going smoothly as far as Yoroi was concerned.

"So then… I see. For Her Highness to escape to this location with only two escorts. But then you could have told the Household… no, nevermind. They would never allow that…" I almost got caught in the moment that I knew was coming and made myself look unintelligent.

"Very clever, Shirogane Takeru. You already understood Her Highness's intentions."

"Did her Highness order for them to stop fighting?" Knowledge was important to me, even if I was already informed of the future.

"Of course she did."

"So that means this coup was orchestrated before it even took place… the schemes are heavy behind here." It was somewhat awkward to pretend that I learned the facts as they showed themselves.

"Perceptive, aren't you, Shirogane Takeru. Ever since the Prime Minister's disappearance, numerous voices calling for the suppression of the insurgents came from the provision government and the Household Department… Her Highness repeatedly ordered them to avoid open conflict, up until the very end… but the provisional government and the army still planned a counterattack, and brought in the UN Army to help."

"So Her Highness decided to use herself as bait the get everyone out of the capital before the fighting can get any worse… such a convoluted evolution of events. " I finished Yoroi's description for him and looked over at Yuuhi, her expression of distress proved that the news we distributed to be correct.

"Section Chief Yoroi. Currently, the American Army is occupying Yokohama Base… are you sure it's safe?"

"That's why I'll be going. The chamberlain and I will go to the command post in the old checkpoint station… tell them we're coming." The future occasions also doesn't looked to be changing.

"Understood. My team will care for Her Highness without fail." I established Yuuhi's protection with Yoroi one last time.

"Your team? You're leading them, Shirogane Takeru?" He somehow picked up the most insignificant facts.

"Yeah, I'm a First Lieutenant, you know?"

"Hahaha, congratulations, Shirogane Takeru. Although you probably didn't get promoted from cadet recently. Don't let Her Highness be exposed to any danger, you understand?" The encouragement from Yoroi somehow still felt insulting.

"I will secure the Shogun without fail." I saluted Yoroi as a good soldier should.

"Not then, Your Highness…"

"Take care of yourself."

"You take care as well, both of you." Yuuhi bid farewell to her escorts as Yoroi disappeared without any trace. I returned to the public channel to update the team.

"—Specter 1 to all units. Some news here, we're no longer on standby, all units prepare for battle. About ten minutes ago, the UN 11th field HQ received information directly from the Imperial Household Department. The Shogun had evacuated from the capital after it all got shot up."

"—1st Lt. Shirogane! Please be serious about this!" Marimo-chan criticized me for making a joke out of the briefings.

"Sorry, I'll stop. Her Highness escaped via a top-secret underground railroad built underneath the Imperial Palace approximately ninety minutes ago. Several other groups were also evacuated at the same time to act as decoys."

"The information was leaked about thirty minutes ago so the coup forces are sending units to every nearby fortification. As a result, fighting within the capital has virtually ceased. The Imperials, Honour Guard and UN Army are all chasing them."

"Our mission objective was also achieved. I have just secured the Shogun and we should be returning to base shortly." It should come as a shock that our objective was related to the Shogun.

"—EH?! Takeru, does that mean the Shogun is our package?!"

"What did I just say, Class rep? Now let me finish the orders." At the same time of my update, I was guiding Yuuhi to my TSF.

"—But… that's like… crazy!" Tama's comment was straight up ignored.

"Section Chief and the Grand Chamberlain that was accompanying the Shogun are currently heading for the Command Post. I'll be taking Her Highness with me in my TSF. Stop asking questions, okay? I can't answer them either. All units form a Circle 1 around me and await further orders."

"—Roger!" The sound of my squad's surface fighters filled the air as multiple units converged on me. I reached my Shiranui just a little while after Ayamine arrived.

—

 **Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Author's note**

And now the coup is in full action. The threat of a two day timeskip is still in effect so just watch for that. (Although I have no idea how you are supposed to do that. This chapter is a little shorter compared to my previous two, and the next few could be even shorter for better storytelling and suspense factors. So I apologize, if a chapter is really short, then I'll roll out another one within the week, no promises though.

I changed the callsigns because typing numbers is legit hard for me on this keyboard. Also, I knew callsign have a space in it, but this just looks so much cooler. Some would say it's the greatest cooool!

Some more copy and paste from the game will be coming up, sorry about that but I try my best to make everything interesting. But in general, I think people will like what I will do with the coup arc. This is one of my prouder moments in literature, after all.

In other news, I just added some more things to the first chapter. (If you saw something about a rewrite, well, I got lazy… so…) It should be smoother to read now, so go back and take a look, not going to cost you anything, if you don't count the electric bills that is, which you shouldn't count.

I've been rambling on for a while now because I'm trying to make up for less words. Guess I'll end it here. If you enjoyed this story, please favourite, follow and review. Or don't, I can't tell you what to do. Thank you to everyone that read my story and please continue supporting me to become a better writer. Byyyyyye!

As always, proofreading done by chad001.


	12. The clash of ideals I

**Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **02:10 AM**

 **Tougashima fortress**

"Your Highness, I recommend you put on this fortified suit. This ride will not be driven with your comfort in mind." A trainee suit was pulled out of my Shiranui drawer.

I could spot a tainted red across Yuuhi's face when I asked her to strip, at least she received some privacy from some thick bushes off to the side.

"I am ready, Shirogane." She came into view once again not a minute later.

"I apologize that this is the only fortified suit available. I wasn't expecting for our mission to involve transporting Your Highness." …Hnnggg… I was so glad that I only prepared the trainee suit…

"It's alright. I do not mind." Those might be her words, but her body was clearly displayed thanks to the transparent material that the suit was constructed of. Her face also forgot to return to a normal colour, favouring an even brighter red instead.

I helped Yuuhi aboard my TSF, she once again took the same position in my lap as before. Her bare chest was starting to urge me the wrong way. Fortunately, Tsukuyomi's profile distracted me from Yuuhi's assets.

"—Shirogane! What is this idea of placing her Highness within your Shiranui!?"

"—Tsukuyomi, first I would like to inform you that I'm a First Lieutenant, just like you are."

"So your rank of a cadet is merely a disguise?"

"We can discuss that later if you so wish. Also, it was our mission from the very beginning to recover Her Highness from the Tougashima Fortress. If you have any complaints, please direct them elsewhere."

Tsukuyomi was obviously morally upset over the Shogun riding with a UN pilot. But her logic was the side to win during her inner argument.

"Fine, Shirogane. Do not let any harm approach Her Highness, do I make myself clear?"

"Of course, Tsukuyomi. Our duty is to protect the Shogun at all cost." The communication link then cut off without a word of farewell. My team had just assembled by my TSF as well.

"Welcome to a Type-94 UN Shiranui, Your Highness. Please put on this safety jacket and attach these four point harness. And please take this pill for when you feel sick." I passed her the anti-motion sickness medicine.

"Scopolamine… an anti-motion sickness pill. I will take this if I indeed feel uncomfortable"

"Yes, the Scopea… the Scopolane… the Scos… Please take them if you happen to feel ill, Your Highness." Some perfect example of choking was demonstrated just now. Yuuhi tenderly giggled at my inability to pronounce.

"Your Highness… please." She only sniggered a little louder in a friendly manner.

"—Takeru-chan! They're sending me so many pictures and stuff again!" My useless vice-commander Sumika interrupted our light conversation to whine about the latest battle news.

"—Ahh… send them over, Archer 1. I'll take a look." The information that confused Sumika was forwarded to my screen instead.

The current situation had no changes compared to any other loops. I took a minute to sort through everything before connecting to the public channel.

"Your Highness, I will put this on speaker for you to hear as well."

"Thank you, Shirogane." The faces of all my teammates presented themselves, I took it as a signal to start explaining.

"—Alright team, here's what's up. Ten minutes ago, contact with the Imperial Army at Atsugi Base was lost. The HQ at Odawara Interchange ruins has also got dropped. Imperial Army units have already engaged the enemy at Mt… My-Myoujingatake? What a tongue-twister."

"Anyway, the main enemy force has split into two groups, one advancing along the Tokyo-Nagoya Expressway ruins and the other along the Odawara-Atsugi Highway ruins. From now on, the first group with be named E1 and the second E2." I changed the image that was shown to the team before proceeding.

"For our escape route. We'll move south through the New Atami Road ruins and then the Izu Skyline ruins. E1 will try to block us from the West by taking the Ashinoko Skyline ruins if they're smart, through Old Mishima City. Another unit will most likely break off from E2 so they can prevent our retreat by pursuing further along Izu Skyline. We can call those guys E3. Creative, I know."

"E2 will probably keep going south down the National Highway 135 to secure the coastline. We will continue to head south, but if E3 appears according to our predictions—" Another screen change was in order.

"The American 108th TSF Armoured Battalion who we plan to meet up with on the way, will create a diversion for us. At around here E1 should leave Old Mishima City, head through Old Nakaizu City and join E2 in order to surround us." I switched the map for the last time to show the rest of the plans.

"The Hiyakawa Toll Booth ruins will be the choke point. The mountains are narrowest right here. If they want to surround us, that's the best spot to do it. So on the other hand, if we can get through there first, the battle is as good as won." That was another big, heavy lie. But I wouldn't uncover it so soon.

"We'll enter the mountains near Mt. Tougasa, and plan to come out in Old Shimoda City. If we do that, the movement of the enemy will no longer matter. By this time, we plan to have the 209th TSF Armoured Battalion from UN Yokosuka Base already inside Old Shimoda City, waiting for the enemy."

"We'll rendezvous with the 11th Fleet from Yokohama Base at the Shirahama coast, then return home to pick up our pay check via sea." The connection was almost cut before I remembered some details.

"One last thing, we cannot expect any naval bombardments or air support during this operation. There are numerous small-scale battles still in progress throughout the area. Even in the capital, the remaining forces continue to stand off." This time I disconnected the maps for real.

"Such a difficult situation… and yet, I am powerless to aid you."

"That's because this is where out battle lies, Your Highness. Your fight takes place in another place, does it not?" I reassured Yuuhi that this wasn't her fault. She only averted my sight.

"We'll move in Arrowhead-2 formation with Stinger 3 in the center, I will merge into the Honour Guard 19th independent Unit as part of the Hammerhead-1 formation." This unfamiliar alignment was invented with everything taken into consideration.

"…The 19th Independent Unit?" The mutter from Yuuhi was only for herself to hear, so I pretended to have missed it.

"—This is Stinger 3. Takeru, are you sure this is wise?" Meiya immediately questioned my decision, which was something I didn't enjoy.

"Stinger 3, we talked about this. Don't forget why your surface fighter is like that." I jogged Meiya's memory of her TSF's colour. Yuuhi should have basically figured out the reason for Tsukuyomi's company, but was keeping it to herself.

"The provisional government had to accept UN Army help under these circumstances. Their only request was for the safety of her Highness."

The provisional government didn't have any choice since the recovery of Yuuhi was planned ahead of time. We were given more freedom with our priorities now that the government couldn't force our hands.

"The backup plan heavily involves the presence of Stinger 3's TSF, so I prefer to not risk the chance of falling back to it. Our support vehicles are ordered to retreat from the battlefield so we won't be seeing those guys."

"This mission is a great honour for us as UN Army soldiers and Japanese citizens. Show the people the true power of the UN. Specter 1 out!" I finally finished the briefing and reached for some liquid to moist my throat.

"I am truly sorry… for causing you all such trouble…"

"Nah… I mean, no, of course not. We will bring you to Yokohama Base without any incident. Please trust us with this duty." Yuuhi chuckled again when I used my modern speech. Her mood was faltering between worry for her country and glad for her own protection.

"You (onushi)? Your speech pattern resembles that of ours somewhat, Shirogane."

"I guess so. I have received education in that area." It had been a long time since anyone pointed out my occasional use of old Japanese pronouns.

Even I can't remember when this first became a habit of mine. Probably after joining the Regent Houses was when I started getting my grammar confused.

"You are quite an interesting man, Shirogane." The words Yuuhi articulated greatly echoed those of Yoroi's, which annoyed me a bit. But there's no way that I'll make those emotions known.

"I try my best, Your Highness." Yuuhi was still entertained by my replies.

"207th TSF Armoured Platoon… all units, move out!" Our surface fighters sprang to life as the lifted off the ground simultaneously. The jump units functioned as they should and boosted the entire team forward, to their first real combat situation.

 **Izu Skyline ruins**

"—Specter 1 to all units. Boost jump over the next valley and drop altitude to one hundred fifty meters. Carry the momentum forward in NOE flight until the mountain range five Kilometers out."

"—Copy that!" The order for a boost jump and Nape-of-the-earth flight was executed with impeccable precision. The team's extensive experience with the new OS was allowing us to incorporate our movements as one. Yuuhi wasn't as uncomfortable thanks to her revealing fortified suit.

"—Archer 3, stay in formation, don't break off."

"—I'm trying!" Mikoto hurriedly fixed her position thanks to Kasumi's foresight.

"—they just broke through the Imperial Army!" Even with this great advantage on our side, the insurgent forces still kept their pace on our asses.

"—remain focused! The distance between us is still far apart!" Meiya calmed down Tama who was worried for the Imperials.

"—multiple TSFs at 12 o'clock!" Sumika noticed the enemies in front of us before the others.

"All units are cleared to engage, return fire at will. But don't attack first as they can't afford to shoot us directly."

"Roger!" Use of lethal weapons was just granted, but they were still too inexperienced to pull the trigger when it came to real battle.

"—to the UN Army and Honour Guard commanders. We mean you no harm. Repeat— we mean you no harm. You must halt immediately. Your actions are a grave violation of Japan's national sovereignty." To be honest, what the rebels were saying wasn't wrong. It was just that we happened to be on the UN's side.

"All units shift left, we have reinforcements coming from behind."

"Roger!" I got our train to avoid the engagements between the Americans and the rebels. Specify, we dodged out of the way for the American Army 66th Battalion.

"—this is the American Army 66th TSF Armoured Battalion. We're here for support. Maintain your speed and let us handle this." The Transmission of an American Eishi announced their assistance.

"—this is 207's commander, copy that."

"—the plan hasn't changed. Keep going." The American F-15 Eagles fired their 36mm and rushed ahead of us to assault the hostiles.

"All units, maintain formation and velocity."

"—copy that!" We blazed past the combat area that belonged to the Americans and the rebels. Something, something "English eat shit" was all I heard.

—

"—Specter 1 to all units. Did you guys see that? Those are the new American model, F-22A Raptors. Their high manoeuvrability and stealth capabilities can easily outgun other third-gen TSFs, good thing they're on our side this time. Sustain our current travel speed and we'll reach the evac point in no time."

"—Copy that!" I lifted our morale with a quick rundown of the combat position we were in.

"Shirogane… you are quite talented as the leader of this squad."

"Thank you, Your Highness. We're only able to perform this well thanks to your presence." I accepted Yuuhi's encouragement with grace.

"Speaking of which, you and your team's movements with these TSFs are rather odd. I have been in awe for some time about your ability to pilot in such a fashion." The difference between the old OS and XM3 wasn't obvious to the untrained eye. However, Yuuhi possessed the wisdom to distinguish that contrast.

"Actually, Your Highness. Our surface fighters are primed with a different Operating System compared to every other TSF. This OS raises the performance by about thirty percent."

"A new OS? And by thirty percent as well. This certainly invokes my interest. Is this OS developed by the UN Army?" Yuuhi was intrigued by my short explanation of the XM3.

"Yes, rather, it's related to the Alternative project. I apologize, but I cannot disclose anything else." Now that the bait was cast, Yuuhi showed even more curiosity. The timing for reeling in the line was more paramount than ever.

"Your Highness, is this unlike the time when you piloted a TSF?" The stale environment was boring me so I established another theme to discuss with Yuuhi.

"This is. I am not familiar with the inside of a Shiranui. Although I do have ninety-six hours of flight time."

"Have you ever been in a real battle?" I already knew that long time ago.

"No, but those born to the house of the Shogun once had a duty to stand at the front of every battle."

"The current Shogun no longer does that, but the tradition still stays for those of the Imperial family, yes?" Yuuhi acknowledged my statement with a sight nod.

"Incidentally, Shirogane. The TSF that you have placed in the middle of this formation. Can I ask for the reason behind your judgement?" A question was brought up about this unnatural TSF placement pattern.

"Your Highness, I'm sure that you already know the reason to that." Yuuhi only smiled genuinely, she appeared to be glad that her hypothesis was precise.

"—to the 207th TSF Armoured Platoon. I am Major Walken, commander of the American Army's 66th TSF Armoured Battalion. For now, Alpha Company is buying you some time, but considering the enemy's strength, we cannot afford to be optimistic."

"We will await your arrival at Kameishi Pass. You will be resupplied once you arrive. Rendezvous with us as quickly as possible—Walken out." Maj. Walken's transmission informed me of the same plan as we always had.

"This is First Lieutenant Shirogane of the 207th TSF Armoured Platoon. All copy, we have received the rendezvous point, ETA thirty minutes. Shirogane out." I inputted the strategic course for the rest of the squad to perceive.

"Specter 1 to all units. We will be executing a three link combination boost followed by a glide dash until Kameishi Peak —Intervals of two hundred seconds will be in effect."

"Copy!" The planned route was taken for maximum speed. The rebels were still hot on our behinds even when I didn't have to compensate for Yuuhi's heath. It was somewhat strange how fast they were chasing, but at this time, I didn't pay it any mind.

"Your Highness, the path we are taking could be rather uncomfortable, even with the fortified suit. Please prepare yourself."

"Yes." I boosted my Shiranui with as much speed as the jump units could provide. The rest of the team followed tightly around me.

 **Sagiri Naoya**

 **Kanagawa, Insurgent Headquarters, Atsugi Base**

"Captain! Our calculation went through its complete course! We can proceed at any time." One of Sagiri's men updated him of the preparation's states.

"That fast… the words of the informant doesn't appear to be a lie then." Sagiri didn't want to trust the unknown source at first, but it was clear that the material it offered was reliable enough to be used on the field to great success.

"This is it. We'll be taking quite a risk. But it's not impossible." The progress of their airdrop was spoken by another operative.

'That's enough, the rest depend on the courage of the pilots." And on cue, the pilot of the 67 1st Airlift Group radioed Sagiri.

"—Now, now. We'll avoid the ground shelling while being on guard against the shooting over Sado. Even if we can't make a living with the shipping company for this. We seem to be able to get by as soldiers."

"—Then you'll go?" Sagiri questioned the devotion of his captains one last time.

"Naturally, my colleagues over here are at the starting point, so… We'll suck in our gut and follow you. You see, the thing is, because of this, we can finally be of use to our country, too." The radio communication was shut off by the pilots after that.

—

"Notifying all units— the operation will proceed ahead of schedule." Loud speakers around the airfield all announced the same message.

"Roger!" Sagiri's subordinates all roared to their leader's order. They trooped outside in fashion and awaited the final speech before departure.

"All units and sortie preparations are now complete! We're ready for take-off at any time!" Sagiri marched outside to have one last drink with his loyal fighters before departure.

"To the warriors who followed our destiny! As you all know, our enemy has reached Kameishi peak. Now Her Highness is being taken away by the hands of military forces from both the United Nations and the United States."

"While we still have some time remaining, entrusting Her Highness to the hands of other countries is equivalent to surrendering this country's future… a future that we should be building by ourselves."

"It's the same as handing over this country's soul… that soul has been worn down by poverty. And there are those who, for the sake of living, deem it acceptable to be reduced down to the level of another person's dog."

"However, there are certainly those who deem otherwise. We will reclaim our soul. And we will set forth to reclaim the soul of this nation, Her Highness. For Japan!"

"For Japan!" The brave Eishis who wished for a change to be brought to their nation gulped down their Sake and their Sakazuki cups shattered upon contact with the ground. They followed Sagiri aboard the An-225 Mriya transport craft to shape their own future.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Kameishi Peak**

"Your highness, I will be opening my cockpit for thirty seconds for you to stretch your legs."

"Thank you, Shirogane." I pulled the lever which released the seat out of the TSF itself.

When we went back inside, Yuuhi took her seat on my lap yet again. My gaze had no choice as it shifted to Yuuhi's front, which was open for viewing due to the suit. Her body was just too perfect for me to pass a peak.

"What is it, perhaps your legs are in pain? I have been sitting upon them for some time now."

"Haha, it is not a problem, Your Highness. I've had many girls who sat there when—" The speed of light was how fast I shut my mouth before it can sign my death warrant.

"Huh? Is something that matter? Please finish your sentence." I silently thanked whatever god is up there for letting Yuuhi be pure enough to not realize my innuendo.

"It's absolutely nothing, Your Highness. Nothing at all."

"I see… if you do feel pain, do not hesitate to voice it." Yuuhi's soft laughter that went along with her words of concern only sent some shivers down my spine.

"—this is Stinger 3, going for resupply now." The purple Takemikazuchi took its turn to restock.

"—copy that, Stinger 3. Switch with Class rep after you're done." I permitted Meiya's refilling of her munitions and fuel.

"Shirogane, was that…" This was Yuuhi's second time hearing Meiya's voice.

"It was, Your Highness. Would you like to communicate with her?" Yuuhi couldn't answer me right away. She hesitated for much longer than it should have taken.

"I do not wish… to distract her during her mission." The response was a logical one, but sad nonetheless.

"I see… You know, her Takemikazuchi, she initially didn't want to pilot it." I tried to brighten up the grim mood brought on by Yuuhi's melancholy.

"…Is that so… huhuhu… that is indeed like her… I do not believe she has ever once accepted a gift of mine."

"Until now, right?" Yuuhi looked up at me, I greeted her with a warm smile in return.

"Yes… tell me, Shirogane. Was it you that convinced her otherwise?" It was quite amazing for Yuuhi to nail the fact on her first try.

"Yes, I persuaded her into piloting it. I must apologize, for I was also the one who influenced her into keeping it the same colour." When I spoke with Yuuhi, it felt only natural to not want to deceive her.

"That's alright. Meiya is…Mitsurugi Meiya made that choice on her own."

"That was the same thing she said to me as well." Yuuhi and Meiya, these two were the symbol of twins that knew each other's hearts even when their distance was infinite in between.

"What did you say to her that changed her mind about the Takemikazuchi?"

"I only asked what her purpose was for becoming an Eishi. She figured the rest out for herself." Meiya didn't need to be convinced. She already recognized the facts, but just didn't see them at the time.

"Was her purpose to protect this country?" Yuuhi again predicted accurately to Meiya's objective. I closed my eyes and nodded in silence.

"Meiya, from time to time she can be strict and stubborn. But her strong beliefs never allowed her to embark on the wrong path. She has a strong sense of duty, along with a heavy responsibility."

"She always considers the squad's well-being above her own… however, there are times when I believe that she is keeping too many problems within her mind. She does not wish for others to be bothered by her troubles, it is very impressive, but… I only fear that she will not be able to handle the entire burden alone."

The personality of that samurai girl was all too clear for me. I hoped that Yuuhi could know her sister better with my words, even if it's only a tiny amount.

"If this is how she seemed to you, Shirogane… then she must depend on you a great deal. From what I have heard, she would never allow others to discern such weaknesses of hers. However… I feel as if talking with you has helped me come to understand it."

The information passed on by word of mouth was the only source for Yuuhi to get to know Meiya. I already promised Meiya that I would tear down any wall that exists between my friends. Nothing made this one special.

"…Understand what?"

"As Yoroi said you are indeed a strange one… huhuhu… you truly are a mysterious gentleman." At least the gentleman part didn't get left out.

"…Shirogane, for such a man like you to be with Meiya. She must be very grateful for your company."

"Your Highness, I cannot accept such words of honour."

"It's alright, Shirogane. Do not feel obligated by my words. Please… tell me more about Meiya."

"Meiya… she was in such sadness when they announced the evacuation of Mt. Tengen. Saying that they did not care about the will of the people. I am sure that her feelings were just like Your Highness's feelings about the people in the capital. She recognized the reason of this rebellion, but her position within the UN Army only serves to contradict her beliefs. However, what pained her the most was seeing Your Highness in an equally agonizing position right now."

"…I am?" A rhetorical question was asked to herself.

"Can't Your Highness understand both the rebel forces and the politicians who took action? Meiya said it was… wrong to make you bear all that pain yourself. She wished to share your pain, she only wished to be of help to You, Your Highness."

"…Shirogane… I have something to ask of you." Knowing Yuuhi's intentions didn't make it any less hurtful to my heart to hear what she wanted from me.

"What is it?"

"Please… give this to her. This is… proof that I have spent time with her… even if it was nothing more than a few days…" Yuuhi presented the doll that held so much meaning to both her and our samurai.

"Proof that you spent time together… are you sure you want me to do it?" It was the same doll, the same rough doll that was evidently handmade.

"It is the one thing I chose to bring with me… I want her to receive it from one she has opened her heart to… If you give it to her… then there is no doubt she would accept it gladly."

"Yuuhi-sama… I cannot take on this request." I pushed the doll back to Yuuhi's palms.

"Is that so… I must hav—"

"For it is better if you can give it to her yourself." The Shogun was shocked by my suggestion. Some displeasure was displayed over my reason of rejection.

"I cannot do that. We are two different people, who are fated to never come face to face…" It was obvious from her voice, there was a hidden sorrow buried deep in her heart.

"Your Highness… I might be merely an Eishi serving the UN, so it may not be my place to say this. However, I do not believe that the dawning sun must be separated from the darkness of the night. For what is light, if there is no darkness to present it."

"The two sides of a coin may seem far from the other, but they are both share a bond that nothing else could replace." No expression of upset was observed from Yuuhi's appearance, her only response was to stare at me with awe.

"But, she has no twin sister. And the Shogun… has no twin either."

"I do not believe that to be the truth. I see a girl in front of me, a girl who resembles a member of my squad greatly. I know that the world we live in today may not consent this idea and flush it away like many other beliefs into a sea of despair."

"Still the fact still remains that blood is thicker than water. A world that will not discard the love between members of the same family, a world that will offer peace to the people. That is a world that I hope to create."

"…Shirogane… do you have faith in such dreams?" If was only logical for anyone to dispute a wish that sounded impossible from any angle.

"Yuuhi-sama. I believe that such dreams are what motivates me to move for tomorrow." And somewhere without my notice, I addressed Yuuhi by her name instead.

"Nonetheless, dreams will only remain within one's imagination… you cannot see dreams as a possible reality. For no matter how beautiful a dream world can be, it will always disappear when the dreamer awakens."

The vision must be shared by many others, but our cruel existence forces itself upon the eyes of those who still survive on this planet.

"Then I shall rephrase my line, Yuuhi-sama. I no longer dream of a peaceful world, a peaceful world is what I will achieve. My goal is to save this earth and protect my love ones, that is the only reason for my being. I will only end my journey once my destination is reached, I cannot retreat back on those vows I made so long ago."

The path that laid itself before me was clearer than ever. The one in my lap shifted her gaze away for some time until she was ready to reply again.

"Then… if you can… please make… please make that goal into reality." Yuuhi's tears dangled within her eye socket, but the Shogun of a nation does not cry.

"I will not fail you, Yuuhi-sama. So please, be the one to grant Meiya her wish."

"I… I promise, Shirogane. If our present allows me to reunite with my other half… then I will share with her… the proof of our time together."

The grand Shogun of Japan may be the most powerful person of this nation. Yet at the same time, she was merely a single girl. And that girl wished for nothing more than to reconcile with her sister.

—

"—all units in the 207th TSF Armoured Platoon." Our moment that just passed was followed by Maj. Walken's new call for attention.

"—enemy forces have reached Yamabushi Peak. Our friendlies have begun to fall back. However, it is a tactical retreat to keep them from becoming surrounded. These enemies are not to be taken lightly, but we have been able to maintain a kill-ratio of seven to one." I mentioned for Yuuhi to wait a second as I listened to Maj. Walken's orders.

"At present. All of these developments are within our expectations, so there will be no changes to the plan or our route. The 207th TSF Armoured Platoon will move out in the same formation as before once it has finished resupplying. We will reinforce your flanks and rear."

"Also, from now on, the 207th TSF Armoured Platoon will be under the command of my 66th TSF Armoured Battalion—Walken out." Even as a First Lieutenant, I still had to obey the order of a Major. It bothered me a bit everything and I just couldn't get used to being directed.

"All copy, major."

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Hakone, Odawara West Interchange**

"—Goddamn it! Kazama! Two more hostiles to your 3 o'clock!" Hayase pulled the trigger on her 36mm that was locked onto a Type-94, but all rounds missed their target and flew off into the wide.

"—Thanks, 1st Lt. Hayase. These guys know, don't they?"

"—well, they definitely were ready for us. Captain, orders?" Munakata drew her sword and clashed with a fellow Eishi before being forced to break off from the engagement when another Shiranui shot a 120mm in her direction.

"—our mission is to hold back the rebel forces from entering the Hakone area! That mission hasn't changed. Do not allow anyone to pass us by!" Isumi kicked away the remnant of a Gekishin and rearmed herself with her assault cannon.

 **Komaki Sayoko**

The adjutant of Captain Sagiri Naoya, First Lieutenant Komaki Sayoko was given the task of securing Hakone and its surroundings so that they could send their reinforcements down south.

"—all units, attack! Don't be scared of their maneuvers! Gather your courage and break through at once!" The second wave of offence was spearheaded by Komaki herself.

"Break to the left wing with Arrowhead one!" Komaki jumped over a small hill with precise timing as a UN Shiranui made a swing for her surface fighter. She pulled her own sword to retaliate, but that unit boosted away and opened fire to prevent her follow up.

"—1st Lt. Komaki! Their movements are too unpredictable! It's just like what the intel said! We can't even track them." One of her men called out the obvious fact.

"Fighting against unpredictable enemies should be our speciality! Besides, we already knew about their unnatural movements. There is nothing to fear here!"

 **Isumi Michiru**

Isumi was getting more and more distraught by the combat scenario that her team was in. The hostiles that they faced were the empire's elites, so the Valkyries didn't presume an easy fight. But the missing link here was the advantage they should have with the XM3 equipped.

"—Valkyries 1 to all units! Maintain formation as is! Even if our enemies somehow knew about the XM3, the fact that we have them won't change! We'll keep pus— Suzumiya! Watch it!" Isumi rushed behind of her subordinate and blocked a fatal strike that would have ended the life of the Second Lieutenant.

"—aaah! Thank you, captain!" the TSF that took the swing backed off and shot a 120mm toward the two, making them evade out of the way.

"—Captain, I don't think we can hold this line forever. The number difference is too overwhelming huge. They clearly knew about our operating system and had developed a countermeasure to it. I recommend a tactical retreat."

Munakata's suggestion wasn't cowardly, any sane person would realize that the pure inequality between the sizes of the two colliding armies.

"—There are too many of them! I need some help here!" Tsukiji's cry for support was somewhat answered by Hayase. But when she cut one down, five more appeared to take its spot.

"All units, pull back over the hill and set up a barrier! Do not waver! We must prevent their progress or more blood will be spilled by the training squad that is escorting Her Highness!" The Valkyries fell back and stood their ground.

Unwillingly, the Valkyries were forced into a defensive position due to the advancing rebel army. Isumi's superb leadership and the new OS could barely even the odds against devastating number of insurgents that were engaging them.

The left flank of the Valkyries was left undefended when the surroundings blocked their view. A hostile Shiranui took that chance and dashed in, gunning pass Hayase and clashing directly with Isumi herself.

 **Komaki Sayoko**

"—surrender! You won't get past us here and you won't catch up with our forces! Don't let this bloodshed continue any longer!" Komaki's comms was connected with the Type-94 she was combating with after breaking their defence line.

"If you're Japanese, then you should be able to see this county's present situation! Why do you still intend to kidnap Her Highness from us! You damn Traitor!" Komaki cursed at her opponent, the captain of the UN unit that stood in their way.

"—we're fulfilling our duty as soldiers of the UN. That is the only thing that matters to us." Komaki's TSF made multiple lunges with her sword, aiming for their commander's unit. All of her attacks were blocked with ease due to whatever enhancement that was applied to their Shiranui.

"When people use these excuses and continue to avert their eyes from reality, this is the result! You only think of protecting your own profit and look down on others due to that. What makes you different from the BETA?"

Komaki may have justice on her side, but the current situation was not. The enemy TSF's movements was superior to her own.

"I repeat… Disengage your arms and have your men surrender! There is no path for you to break through here! If you cause is really just, then you shouldn't be spattering the blood of so many!"

A weapon was actually dropped by Komaki, however just as quick, she replaced it with her sword instead. The other Eishis were keeping the rest of their enemy busy. Her determination grew as the odds begin to even out.

"I no longer have any more words for us to convey. The snow has already fallen, what had piled up on this earth is visibly glistening from the light."

"To mark the end of the winter season, it will thaw and cleanse the earth. The dawn of a new season is near… we're the snow and we will wash away the corruption of this country. But until that time comes, there will be no bridge behind us unburnt."

Komaki raised her weapon high. A single strike was all she needed to put down the enemy commander, and a single strike was all she would deliver.

 **Isumi Michiru**

The shadows of two machines clashed together, but that shadow which struck Isumi's frame didn't belong to that of the enemy she was engaging with. Another sword fell out of the sky and cleaved her unit. Isumi's arm that held her blade which slashed the legs of the enemy's commander was no longer attached.

"—What…! All units! Fall back immediately!"

It only took a spilt second for Isumi to realize their situation and put her damaged Shiranui into full reverse. Because if she didn't, she would never have a chance to understand their position ever again.

"—Captain! Their reinforcements just passed us! …In planes!"

"I know! But we have to pull back for now. There is no point in holding back the ground troops if they got transport aircraft. Don't worry, this is all part of the Professor's plan. We have served our roles already, retreat and we'll wait for further orders."

Being forced to retreat was equal to a loss in her books. But nothing will be accomplished if Isumi's team just get wiped right here. The Valkyries still had their secondary objective to complete.

 **Sagiri Naoya**

"—Komaki, are you unhurt?" Sagiri's Shiranui helped his adjutant out of her disabled frame. He descended from the sky just in time to save his second-in-command.

"—Captain… Captain! Why did you drop here? Their forces are still ahead of us!"

"Don't worry, the second detachment is headed for them now. Our main force should be able to cut them off at Hiyakawa Toll Booth. We need our reinforcement down south to utterly surround them."

Sagiri was confident in his chance of success. The units that were sent to the other fortresses were only a feint to deceive the loyalists. With the help of their informant, he already knew that the Shogun would be running to Tougashima Fortress the moment she left.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Izu Skyline ruins, Near Sawaguchi**

The rebel army had already reached Kameishi Peak. Their speed and movement was on par with ours. I still piloted without worrying for Yuuhi's condition thanks to the fortified suit. But the time it took wasn't normal, they were too fast, way too fast. I was starting to believe that the other possibilities could take place.

"—Hunter 1 to all units. A group of enemies seen advancing through Old Mishima Town and the Road 136 ruins is nearing the Hiyakawa Toll Booth ruins. The 174th TSF Armoured Battalion is currently engaging them."

If I remembered correctly, even the Fuji Instructional Unit joined in the fun and tried to stop us. Maj. Walken confirmed my theory when he declared the exact same news.

"—this is headquarters to Specter 1. The anti-ECM measures will last for thirty seconds." A very sudden and unexpected single was picked up by my comms.

"—Specter 1, go ahead, headquarters."

"There is no time for repeats so listen well. The Odawara West Interchange point has fallen. Hostile reinforcements will be supporting E2 and E3 from Hakone. We also have information that the insurgents are using the Imperial Army's 67 1st Air Transport Unit. Headquarters out."

The communication line was disconnected before the time limit counted down to zero.

"The airdrop unit? Seriously? Damn those guys are early." This unfavourable development was somewhat stunning. For the Valkyries to retreat from Odawara wasn't too shocking. Nevertheless, I would prefer not to be forced to play the trump card here if I can help it.

"—Maj. Walken. The 67 1st Air Transport Unit is coming to drop off reinforcement. They're heading for Hiyakawa." I channelled the major to let him in on the update.

"—what? You mean an airborne assault? Impossible… it cannot be!" As if here to disprove the major's argument, the dozen of transport aircraft flew overhead, its direction was none other than Hiyakawa.

"—they have completely outsmarted us. We are too used to think that TSFs cannot be used with aircraft, especially over a dangerous area." Tsukuyomi's first words since the beginning were an opinion that sounded accurate with our situation.

"Maj. Walken. I recommend regrouping with the 174th Tactical Armoured Battalion and retreating back toward Atami. The Hiyakawa Toll Booth is way too tight for us to push through. And they stand no chance if the airdrop lands by Hiyakawa. If we turn back, maybe we can break past their siege."

"I agree with that, Major. If we pull back now, we can still find another point to break through." The 1st Lt. Lieutenant of the Honour Guards seconded my opinion.

"Alright, I understand. —Hunter 1 to Heat Leader. Disengage the hostiles and retreat. Regroup with us and we'll find another way out."

"—Heat Leader, roger that… disengaging now." The map showed the 173th Battalion immediately withdrew and headed for out location.

"—Hunter 1 to all Platoon leaders. Turn to your five o'clock direction and hold. Once we link up with 173th Battalion, we will search for a possible exit."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Yokohama Base**

"—Vice-Commander, I'm sending over the verification codes now." A new window popped up on Kouzuki's computer. It displayed several integers and alphabets that she triple checked to ensure no human error could take place.

"—yeah, this is good. Let them in."

"—yes, Ma'am." The security guard at the front gate opened up the barrier and allowed a single unregistered car with no plate steer through the final checkpoint before entering Yokohama.

"So he is finally here, huh? That Shirogane, adding so much extra work for me… all this better be worth it." Kouzuki remarked to nobody. Getting up from her chair and inspecting her reflection in the mirror. She was being prepared to meet up with a very vital figure in her plan constructed by the Causality Conductor.

—

A man donned with a pair of glasses that bore great resemblance to Cadet Sakaki's old pair exited the back seat of his car. The bodyguards that escorted him exchanged some lines with a few infantry personnel that came out to greet him. After a short talk, he was guided into the UN's army Yokohama base.

Where eventually the glasses-wearing man arrived at what appeared to be a conference room. With two sofas lined up facing each other and a single desk perpendicular to them, the man noticed two individuals standing by the window behind said desk.

There, awaiting him was a young, purple haired female professor together with an important looking Indian-born man.

"Welcome to Yokohama, Prime Minister Sakaki." General Radhabinod gestured for a handshake which Sakaki returned with steadiness.

"Thank you for having me, General."

"Must have been a tough trip on your way here." The professor casually grinned and took Sakaki's hand as well.

"It was, most unfortunate that I could not stop this tragedy from taking place." A second smirk surfaced on the professor's features.

"I do not believe any sugar-coated words would do us any good here, Prime Minister Sakaki. Please have a seat and allow us to commence the real discussion."

"Thank you, General." Sakaki inched over to the sofa and relaxed himself on top of it.

"So then, Prime Minister Sakaki. I think it's time for you to reveal your secrets. As part of our deal." It was to Sakaki's irritation that the deal set between him and the upper echelon of the UN was this unfavourable. But a greater cause can be achieved here if all goes according to plan.

"Very well." A small hard drive was removed from Sakaki's chest pocket and passed onto the professor.

"Thank you, 1st Lt. Piatif. Please verify this disk."

"Ma'am." The device was taken away by a short haired blonde and inserted into a PDA that she held in her hands.

"Professor, it's secure. No signs of modification were detected." The report was a testament to Sakaki's honesty. A wordlessly nod from the professor sent the First Lieutenant away on command.

"Thank you, Prime Minister Sakaki. This information will be of great assistance to the future of this nation."

"I know, my only wish is for the prosperity of Japan." Sakaki replied to the general.

"Now then, it's time for us to uphold our side of the deal."

"Before that, I need to know the details of this plan. It would be unfortunate if any misconceptions are to take place due to our lack of understanding."

"Of course, everything you need to know about the Alternative plans will be discussed."

—

 **Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Author's note**

Sorry for another short chapter, I did say it in my first chapter the words would in between 7000 to 10000. I went over 10000 twice, so think of these as balancing out. Although it's still pretty short, may post a new chapter earlier next time.

I am still looking for help from anyone that played the Total Ellipse visual novel. I wish to be as accurate to the original story as possible, but since the VN isn't translated and must information about its plot is mucky. While I dislike doing, if no one can provide me a plot summary of the VN. I most likely will break a bit of canon to write the arc, sorry about that. But most of you probably only watched the anime, so it shouldn't be that bad?

Another thing, Komaki Sayoko is not an OC. She appeared in the Alternative manga and "The days after" as the same role in this story. I don't do OCs unless it's a role that needs to be filled. If they appear, they won't stick around for more than two chapters I want to say. Still no promises but OCs won't flood this fic that's for sure.

Anyway, thank you for coming again and visiting my fic. Please review and stuff if you believe this story to be worth it. If you have any suggestion, question or just want to talk to me, a review or PM is always welcome. We all know that I have no life, or else this story won't be updated this regularly. HAHAHA! (Going to cry in a corner later.) Until next time then!

Editing and proofreading done by chad001.


	13. The clash of ideals II

**Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **03:10 AM**

 **Izu Skyline, Near Sukumoyama**

I could say a lot about our current state of affairs, but 'in our favour' wasn't one of those lines.

"Shirogane, what is our condition right now?"

"I'm not gonna lie to you, Your Highness. But if people look up the word 'disadvantageous' in a dictionary, they will find this battle to be an example." There was no point in deceiving Yuuhi when she also could hear our comms.

"Are we still searching for an exit?"

"Yeah, we don't have too many options here. Hiyakawa, Atami, Kannami and Izunokuni are all filled with rebel forces. This could be really bad if they start to advance and limit our area."

We have been besieged for around fifteen minutes now. Some light skirmishes were fought around the defence line, but their support arrived only minutes after and we were forced to back off.

"—this is Hunter 1 to all Platoon leaders. A new battle plan has just been established." Maj. Walken seemed to have a method out of this one-sided stalemate.

"An evacuation method was offered by the USAF 34th transport unit. A C-130 Hercules will launch off from Carrier Theodore Roosevelt of the 7th Fleet."

"They will be performing a Fulton surface-to-air recovery operation to directly retrieve the Shogun together with the TSF that Her Highness currently occupies. They will then fly to Yokohama Base to drop off Her Highness."

That was quite a crazy operation for the USAF to attempt. But on the other hand, it could also be the best for our situation if they just skyhook us straight out of combat.

"—Maj. Walken! You wish for Her Highness to be lifted and carried over hostile territory? There is no way for us to protect Her Highness if she is to be sky hooked away!" Tsukuyomi made her obvious disapproval known to the team.

"—First Lieutenant, you are an observer in this operation. You've been allowed to listen to our transmissions. But I do not recall giving you permission to speak. Our objective is to evacuate Her Highness as soon as possible. I do believe this is the best method." Maj. Walken fired back after Tsukuyomi's second transmission.

"…I understand." The plan was too logical for Tsukuyomi to reject.

"—what will we use as the beacon? And how can we avoid detection, Major?" I asked the actual questions this time.

"We will improvise with a self-propelled jump unit for the beacon. To avoid detection, the jump unit that is connected to the harness will boost upward until it reaches the required height one minute before pickup. The window of opportunity is small, but the 34th unit will be experienced enough to made the pickup."

If Maj. Walken can testify for their skills, then I shouldn't have to worry.

"Will the line be able to handle the weight of a TSF?"

"The harness is specially design for TSF transportation. There will be no problems." There was confidence in our supplies.

"What about the rest of the Platoons? How will you escape after out retreat?"

"Currently, recovering Her Highness is top priority of this operation. I will lead all units away from combat once the Shogun is a safe distance away." If the rebels would cooperate by not shooting anyone after we leave, that would certainly be helpful.

"The 34th transport unit's ETA over our airspace is thirty minutes. 207th Platoon will be the center and the last defence line. My team will spread out and plant an ambush in case of enemy attack. Heat team will reinforce the 207th. This is the overview of the mission plan. All teams prepare the procedure for pickup. Walken out."

—

"Shirogane, this might be late. But who else is in your unit?" Yuuhi thought up a nice icebreaker to distract us from this stalemate.

"We have Meiya, whom Your Highness already knows. Next is Class re— Sakaki Chizuru."

"Sakaki… could she be Sakaki Kurechika-dono's daughter?" Yuuhi noticed the same family name as the Prime Minister.

"Yeah, she is. She used to be the Squad leader, before I took over."

"Were you transferred into the Platoon, Shirogane?"

"Yep, I came to power after our combat exam." I wasn't even watching my speech at this time.

"Combat Exam… is that not before TSF training?" That was when Yuuhi realized that we were still a training squad.

"Yeah, Your Highness, did you not know we are mostly cadets?" Yuuhi gawked at me for a few seconds.

"Training squad? Are you not a Frist Lieutenant, Shirogane?"

"I am, and so are the fireteam leaders, 2nd Lt. Kagami and Yashiro. It's just the rest are cadets. We are a special unit, working directly under the Vice-Commander of Yokohama base." Yuuhi returned her expression to normal after a little explanation.

"I see… I must apologize again for involving cadets into my mistake."

"That's fine, Your Highness. No one is going to look for our rank on the battlefield." No matter the position within the military; out on the field, everyone was equal.

"We have deterred from our topic, Shirogane. Who else is in your squad?"

"There's Yoroi Mikoto, Section Chief Yoroi's daughter. Oh yeah, Your Highness. Does Section Chief Yoroi also speaks in riddles around you?" This was my chance to find out Yoroi's behaviour around serious people.

"He does. Yoroi is not the most clear man in my memories."

"Hehehe, I guess that would be only rational." Yoroi could be solemn when he needed to be. However, that wasn't the most unique trait about him.

"Finally, we have Tamase Miki, the Undersecretary's daughter. And Ayamine Kei, ex-army general Ayamine's daughter."

"Such a… for this group of people to be within one squad. They are also deeply involved in this incident as well." Yuuhi recognized everyone's background.

"Everyone has a reason to join the military, they just got put into the 207th squad because of their backstories. The same is true for me and the other lieutenants."

"If I have a chance, I would like to speak with them."

"I can certainly arrange that once this mess is over." The squad would probably be honoured to be granted audience with the Shogun.

"Shirogane, I thought I was mistaken at first. But you do speak quite casually from time to time."

"Huh? Ah, sorry Your Highness. My habits have also been pointed out by my team as well. I believe that building a friendly relationship with others who will watch my back is the best method." I could change my speech pattern with a moment's notice, after all.

"That is not it. You have clearly been educated to behave like the member the Regent Houses. However, I have no recollection of your background whatsoever."

"Ah… it's just my past isn't something I would normally talk about. And my current rank within the UN Army is where I'm at.

During one of my more successful loops. I was taught the speech pattern of the noble families after marrying Yuuhi. Unfortunately, many accidents transpired throughout that loop, accidents that I rather forget forever. Most importantly, taking the last name Koubuin just pissed me off to no end.

"Huhu, you can change your own personality so easily. I find that to be highly intriguing."

"I apologize for my rudeness, Your Highness."

"It is fine, having someone speak casually to me is quite refreshing."

"Then if you don't mind, Yuuhi-sama."

 **Hayase Mitsuki**

 **Izunokuni**

"—the marker places us right here… you got anything, Akane?"

"—Sorry, 1st Lt. Hayase. I can't find it either." The Valkyries were off the off the beaten path, looking for their package.

They were not happy; they lost. They failed their mission of defending a chokepoint from the rebels. Their enemies forced them to retreat, to run away because they were incapable of defeating their foes.

Maybe if the Valkyries had two more members, or maybe if their new OS wasn't made public knowledge. But none of that mattered now, a loss is a loss no matter what excuses they wished to use. Even having been demoted to delivery girls by the Professor, they still have to fulfill that role without delay.

"Tsukiji! Do you see our box?" Asked Hayase, who just flipped an abandoned building inside out, literally in her TSF. She was getting annoyed with their task at hand.

"—Nothing, 1st Lt. Hayase. Mou, why do we have to be doing this anyway…? Shouldn't some other unit be taking care of this kind of… Ah, I'm sorry!" Hayase only brushed off Tsukiji's comment. Her habit of speaking without thinking was a norm to most members of A-01.

"—this is Valkyrie 3. Looks like I just won, Hayase. The package is secured."

"Tsk, whatever. —B flight, clean up and let's get going!" Clicking her tongue out of frustration. Hayase understood there was no way to control the bet between her and Munakata, as it was purely based on luck.

"—Valkyrie 1 copy. Did you check the contents, Munakata?" Captain Isumi joined the open channel after hearing the same announcement.

"Opening now… yeah, this is what we're after. The 1200mm OTH Cannon. Why do you think command buried this gun all the way out here, Captain?"

"Don't ask me. Vice-Commander was very clear in her orders. Acquire the 1200mm at the provided coordinates and await further command. No updates to the plan as of yet."

"So why are these coordinates so inaccurate? It's like the Professor was trying to coordinate our failure." Some giggles were heard after Hayase's terrible attempt at a joke that almost froze the world.

"…That was so bad. Captain, you tell her too."

"It's… just drop it already. Although I do have to increase my temperature in here. Even Hayase's hot-headed tenancies couldn't recover that joke." This time, full blown laughter came from almost everyone.

"It got really chilly at of the sudden. But Hayase should be fine after that burn."

"…God damn it!" More jokes, puns and wisecracks were fired off from the Special Task Force that had their hands free after suffering a defeat.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Izu Skyline, Near Sukumoyama**

"—this is Hunter 1. All preparations are finalized. T-minus ten minutes to pickup."

"Heat leader, copy that."

"1901, copy."

"This is Specter 1, copy." By connecting one end of the harness to a spare boost unit and the other to the hooks on my TSF. We slapped together a makeshift beacon for the aircraft to pinpoint, and hopefully the plane's peg can catch the beacon and lift us out.

"We have ten minutes, Your Highness."

"I have heard." The ambience we shared was tenser than needed be. I shifted uneasily in my seat to adjust my posture any way I could.

"Shirogane, can you connect me to the public channel?"

"Of course, but may I know the reason behind this request?" It was probably just like what I had in mind, but double-checking wouldn't hurt.

"I wish to speak to all the soldiers who protected me so far." Her answer made my prediction correct.

"Then by all means. —this is Specter 1 to all units, Her Highness have something to say." A few chatter of disbelief was whispered over the channels. I activated the mic on Yuuhi's suit for her speech to reach the others.

"—Commander of the United States Army, is it alright for me to have your full name?"

"—Your Highness… I am honoured to have an audience with you. I am Major Alfred Walken, of the United States Army 66th TSF Armoured Battalion."

"Major Walken, I apologize for addressing everyone over the radio. Nevertheless, as the Grand Shogun of Japan, I wish to express my gratitude for what the American Army has done today." Normally, Yuuhi would thank everyone after we are offered a ceasefire. Naturally, that wasn't the case right now.

"Such graciousness… Your Highness, there is no need." Maj. Walken's opinion was collective with most of his men.

"I also wish to express my gratitude as the Grand Shogun… for the dedication and courage all these American soldiers have shown. Unfortunately, I cannot convey my appreciation more personally, please understand that my words are sent with uttermost sincerity."

"Your Highness, as members of the United States Army, we are all very grateful for your generosity. The forces under my command will not fail to ensure your safe arrival to Yokohama Base. If you would allow it… I ask that you instead honour my subordinates by praying for their success."

Since Tsukuyomi wasn't saying any lines, I couldn't comprehend her current mood. Although she was most likely unhappy with the head of our country being this humble to soldiers of another army.

"I understand. I shall be in their care."

"Yes, ma'am. You may depend on us." It was this type of attitude that allowed Yuuhi to become who she was. Even knowing what the American Army had done in the past, namely abandoning Japan in its time of need, she still thanked the American Eishis with an honest intention.

"Now then, First Lieutenant Shirogane. As the Grand Shogun of Japan, I wish to express my gratitude for what the UN Army has done today." Yuuhi tilted her head up and directed her gaze straight into my own eyes.

"Your Highness. Thank you very much for this honour."

"And to your subordinates as well. I am thankful for their courage and dedication they have presented. The current disorder in my country is all because of my own incompetence. I offer you my sincerest apologies… for you are the ones who are tasked with the protection of my country."

"A-ah…" The team was left speechless by Yuuhi's indication of regret.

"Shirogane, may I speak to your subordinates?"

"Yes, as you will. I'll set up a secure frequency for your communication." A radio list categorized by the callsigns of my squad took center screen on Yuuhi's projector.

The rest played out mostly the same as any other times. Yuuhi reassured Class rep of her father's safety and loyalty to Japan. Comforted Tama and prided her for serving the international community just like her father.

She spoke to Mikoto about her father's habit of pissing people off with his traits. But mostly how Yoroi Sakon's ramblings were of great help to Yuuhi's anxieties.

And finally, Yuuhi quoted Ayamine's father, a General who was dubbed a traitor to this nation. Yet Yuuhi understood the difficulties of the decisions he faced and let Ayamine perceive the recognition of her father. As for Marimo-chan, they conversed in a very adult like manner, even if Yuuhi was only a teenager when it came to her age.

"What is your name?"

"—Yashiro Kasumi." What a reply from Kasumi, no honorific to be found here. Much to the shock of everyone else, even Yuuhi stopped talking for a short second.

"—Kasumi-chan! You can't just talk to the Shogun like that!" And the assist from Sumika. The image of the UN Army was shattered the second these two received their turn.

"Then how should I say it?"

"I don't know, but you have to be respectful!" Being the man with foresight, I thanked my intelligence for using a secure channel. Or else, we would been seen as the laughingstock to the Americans, or get executed by Tsukuyomi.

"Yuuhi-sama, these two are the main contributors to a secret UN project. So please excuse their lack of respect." To my disbelief, Yuuhi was giggling along with those two as their conversation flowed on.

"Huhuhu… it is alright, what is your name?"

"Ah…! I'm Kagami Sumika!" I couldn't tell if Sumika was serious in her behaviour or just naturally stupid to the situation.

"Even if we are at a time of crisis. The positive atmosphere brought on by your interactions was quite relaxing for me. For that, I am grateful. Please continue your support of this squad with your cheerful orientation."

"Okay!" the carefree 00 unit and her emotionless bunny friend responded in unison.

"I do not know the two of you personally. However, even to an outsider like me, I can notice the affection you reveal. Since you are also forced to bear the responsibility of this war, I can only apologize for involving the two of you. Please bear with it for a little longer."

"It's not your fault, Your Highness."

"That's right! We are here for our own future!" Their smiles brightened the mood around us, Yuuhi answered with her own slight beam.

"To the both of you, thank you for your service to my country."

—

In the end, Meiya was still the only one to not be granted an audience with her relative. It pained my heart to see the distance between the sisters had yet to diminish, but it was only a matter of time before they come face to face and showed each other their concealed fondness.

—

"Your Highness, please place this in your mouth." I handed Yuuhi a weird shaped plastic device.

"What is this, Shirogane?"

"It's a mouth guard. To prevent you from biting your own tongue during take-off." If Yuuhi somehow died from the abrupt burst of force, that would just be plain foolish.

"This device is surprising comfortable." The guard was obediently placed into her cavity.

"—this is Hunter 13 to Hunter 1! The insurgent forces are advancing on our location!" It only made sense for them to pinpoint us after seeing the jump unit, but it was stealthy enough to buy us plenty of time.

"—this is Heat Leader. The Jump unit has reached the full height of the harness. The aircraft is on-point and ready for pickup."

"—copy that, Heat Leader. All preparations are compete. —this is Hunter 1 to all Platoons, fall in on Specter 1, provide cover fire if the enemy were to rush us. 1st Lt. Shirogane, the airlift is thirty seconds out, brace for take-off." I rechecked all my system for the third time to allow no room for errors.

"—this is the captain of the USAF 34th transport unit. We have confirmation on your beacon. Proceeding to retrieve asset." The noise of the aircraft roared vociferously overhead. My map displayed many rebels closing in on our position.

"—Hunter 1 to all units! Engage all hostiles that appear within your line of sight. We can't allow them to disrupt the evac!" The rebels started asking us to cease fire and surrender to them once again. The vicious gunfire that surrounded me only served to further increase the casualties.

"—Specter 1 to the 207th Battalion. From this moment onwards, Archer 1 and Stinger 1 will take over command. Stinger 2 and Stinger 3 will be second-in command for this Platoon. Follow their orders when the situation applies. Specter 1 out."

"—Roger!" The rest of my squad answered naturally.

"—Specter 1 to Archer 1 and Stinger 1. This is an encrypted channel, no need for any precautions. You two still remember what to do after if the scenario plays out, right? Don't let me down now."

"—Archer 1, copy. Don't worry, I'm not that dumb! Do your best, Takeru-chan!"

"—Stinger 1, copy. Good luck, Takeru-san." Sumika and Kasumi's orders were a difficult one. I was relieved that they still had recollection.

"That's good, Specter 1 out." I closed the first line only to open another transmission.

"—this is Specter 1 to Stinger 3. You have limited authority as second-in-command of this unit. Free fell to enact on them." The radio connected to Meiya's frame next, who also had her own role to play out. Yuuhi was visually unsettled by my action. But whatever she felt she didn't voice.

"—Stinger 3, roger."

"Stinger 3, anything you would like to convey before our departure?" My sudden question caught Meiya off guard.

"…Specter 1, please keep Her Highness safe… and please honour our promise." The voice from my speaker was also perceptible to Yuuhi. But at that time, Meiya is still nothing more than a member of the UN.

"Will do, Stinger 3."

"And one more thing… Your Highness, please forgive my future actions." The first line Meiya ever spoke to her twin sister was a pleading for forgiveness.

"Your words… I have clearly received them."

"Stinger 3. This is not a sacrifice, this is another promise, I will always be there to protect you so I trust you to keep everyone safe in my place."

"Stinger 3… copy. I wish for your safety upon this journey. Stinger 3 out." We disconnected our calls once no more words were needed. Yuuhi could only keep her gaze hidden from my sight.

"This is the captain of the 34th transport group. We will have lift-off in three… two… one… Pickup confirmed."

The sudden rush of G-force from being stationary to being pulled by an eighty thousand pounds aircraft was somewhat agonizing. Luckily, Yuuhi only shared my pain to a certain extent. Her hands clenched mine with great strength as my Shiranui was carried away.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

The soldiers under the command of Sagiri couldn't risk shooting toward Takeru's Shiranui. They didn't know if that unit carried Her Highness with it. But that also left the rest of them in a terrible spot, as the enemies now had a reason to fully attack their Platoons. The American Eishis were engaging the insurgents in front of Meiya, she wasn't sure if she was capable of joining in on the fight.

"—to the UN Army commander. I am Sagiri Naoya from the Imperial Mainland Defence Army's 1st TSF Armoured Regiment." Sagiri Naoya just addressed all forces currently in combat within this area.

"Cease all combat operations immediately. We do not want a fight. We have had reason to rebel, and now we stand on opposing sides… but we do not desire conflict. Your forces do not stand a chance against us."

"Your reinforcements from Tokyo will not make it here on time. We request a non-hostile meeting with Her Highness immediately. If you do not answer, we will be forced to use all means at our disposal to verify Her Highness's presence. Sagiri out."

There was no need to doubt the truth behind Sagiri's words. Meiya knew the capabilities of the elites who defended her country.

"—Hunter 1 to all units, do not mind the enemy commander! Now that the Shogun has been recovered safely. We just need to break out of this trap!" speaking as always easier to say than performing. Maj. Walken understood his goal. It was reaching the objective that proved to be the most problematic.

"—Archer 1 to all members of the 207th Platoon. I know that this is everyone's first time fighting. But if we don't do something, we won't be able to hold out any longer. We are not going to let Takeru-chan down by losing here. If we don't do our best, we'll probably regret it later."

"I really wanted us to have some more time, but that's just not the case. Please, everyone. Remember your training and your resolve. Kasumi-chan, what should we do here?"

"All units, formation Arrowhead-3, cut through their left flank and engage all hostiles." Their temporary leaders, Sumika and Kasumi put out an order for attack. She knew the condition was not to their advantage, but she was determined to enact the role bestowed upon her until the very end.

"…Roger!" Meiya was the only one who couldn't answer to Sumika's call. Because she knew that there was another way besides combating against the soldiers of Japan.

"—Stinger 3 to Archer 1! I request a top priority connection."

"Stinger 3, encrypted channel granted. Go ahead."

"I will perform my role here. Is that alright?" Meiya could no longer afford to hesitate if she wanted to save those who are important to her. So that she could keep her vow to that man.

"Meiya-san… if you see that to be the best choice here. Please, we'll be in your hands…" Sumika sounded conflicted, just like Meiya herself. But they both recognized that there wasn't any option left.

With one final mental check, Meiya was prepared to do the unthinkable. In one way or another, this was what she had been trained for her entire life. The stage before her had no light, no camera nor director, but no other stage could be more perfect than what was presented.

Meiya had every tool she needed to act her part, the script was given by Takeru. It was him that instructed Meiya on their way to Tougashima. He told her to act when she deems appropriate to unleashed her talent, and nowhere else was more suitable than here.

With the powerful roar of the jump units attached to her frame. The Takemikazuchi boosted high above the rest. The barrels that were aimed at her didn't fire a single shot. All the Insurgent Eishis saw her, but they could never allow themselves to fire upon what they saw.

"—I am Koubuin Yuuhi. The Grand Shogun of Japan." The oration of lies flowed through the comms of all the Eishis who fought for their own ideals like a summer night thunder.

No one that perceived her words wasn't shocked to their very core. The only audio that was detectable was the sound of many engines of the TSFs and the distant wind.

With the arms open and weapons away, the purple Type-00R, the only Takemikazuchi of its kind showed no signs of hostility. Within its cockpit, the single cadet's heart was pounding like never before.

She wasn't afraid, but worried. Worried that her disguise would be exposed, worried that even the Shogun was no longer capable of controlling this savage battle.

"I have presented myself as you requested, Sagiri. Now order your men to pull back at once." Every pair of eyes that was sensible turned to view the lone Takemikazuchi that hovered above the rest.

"—I am elated by the honour of receiving an audience with you. I am Captain Sagiri Naoya of the Imperial Mainland Defence Army 1st Division's 1st TSF Armoured Regiment." Sagiri's men quickly made distance between them and the American vanguard.

"Do not be mistaken, Sagiri. I did not grant you an audience with me. However, this is an issue that we must face eventually. I ask for an hour of ceasefire from both sides. This is a demand from me personally. During that time, I will reconsider all options available and take the most realistic action possible."

"Of course, Your Highness. Can I understand this to mean that we can call you again on all channels in sixty minutes?" To disagree with the Shogun would be of most foolishness in this situation.

"Yes, that will be fine." Meiya disconnected the call and lowered her Takemikazuchi back to the ground, where all Platoon leaders awaited her return.

—

"Meiya-sama! Are you okay?" Tsukuyomi was the first to dash to Meiya's side after the she disembarked her surface fighter.

"Ah, Tsukuyomi. I am alright, thank you for your concern."

"Meiya-sama… that was very unexpected of you, are you sure of your actions?" Impersonating the Shogun of Japan was a severe crime that would be punishable by death.

"We didn't have any options. I am sure that Her Highness would forgive me if it meant saving the lives of soldiers on both sides." Meiya was ready for any sentence, but somehow she knew that her other half wouldn't carry out her penalty.

"Still, cadet…" Maj. Walken entered the conversation after landing his TSF as well.

"It's Mitsurugi, sir."

"Cadet Mitsurugi, I had my suspicion ever since I saw the colour and model of your TSF. However, I did not foresee that you would mimic the Shogun. While I am curious as to the reason and ability for you to perform such act. I will not ask since you did help us out of that poor situation."

Maj. Walken's liberality to cease further questioning was well respected by Meiya.

"Thank you for understanding, Major. Then I will excuse myself if I am no longer needed." Meiya moved away from the superiors that were gathering to discuss the next step.

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

"When they said that our allies from Tokyo won't make it time, was that only a bluff?" The Platoon leaders gathered to discuss their future strategy.

"I do not believe so, Major. They have the entire area locked down from here to Hakone. It would be difficult for our reinforcement to break through within the little time we have." 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi inserted her opinion and no one felt it was inaccurate.

"They agreed to Mitsurugi's request for ceasefire so easily. Could there be a possible chance that they'll attempt to kidnap the Shogun?"

"That won't happen." Kasumi rarely spoke during the meeting. This was one of the few times.

"…Do you agree, First Lieutenant?" Maj. Walken turned his attention to 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi.

"Yes, those men and women have risen up out of lamentation for the state of the country and the position Her Highness has been placed in. They would not dare to disobey an order from the Shogun herself, as long as they do not know it was not from Her Highness."

"As for me, I cannot understand why the enemy won't break their vow. But either way, this stalling for time is convenient for us. Heat leader, have your men switch their position with mine every ten minutes." Maj. Walken considered breaking the ceasefire, but the risk wasn't equal to the reward.

"Roger that." A radio answered was heard by everyone around.

"Second Lieutenant—" Maj. Walken turned to Kasumi next.

"Sir." Kasumi was trying her best to act military. The low voice she emitted wasn't taken as an issue by the other leaders.

"Prepare yourselves for an infantry ambush, just in case. The 207th Platoon will take some rest in the meantime."

"Roger. Thank you, Major." Maj. Walken was a little confused by the Russian girl and her bunny ears. But suppressing his curiosity wasn't hard for a soldier of his rank.

"Major, my unit will also disembark from our TSFs and patrol the area."

"Very well. Perform your duty as Imperial Honour Guards." There was no motive for Maj. Walken to distress Tsukuyomi.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Shizuoka, over Gotemba**

"—this is your captain speaking. We'll be taking a detour to avoid hostile fire over the Hakone area. We are currently above Gotemba ruins, we will proceed over Mt Tanzawa and circle around to Yokohama."

"—copy that, Captain."

"Your highness, how are you feeling?" we were still dangled by the harness that connected us to the aircraft. Due to lack of preparation, they couldn't reel us in from how the lines attached.

"I am fine, Shirogane. This is much more relaxing than earlier. Do not be uneasy, I am not blaming you for anything."

"Your Highness, if there is anything that makes you uncomfortable, please let me know. Other than our position right now, I can adjust most other things." Yuuhi only giggled quietly and blushed a little.

"If such events are to take place, I will let you know." Most of our ride was spent silently, not much to talk about when the country below us was engulfed in the flames of war.

—

A sudden tightening noise woke me from my light slumber. Yuuhi also was startled by the sudden rattle of my Shiranui.

"What is happening…? Your Highness, did you notice any change with my TSF?"

"Ah… no." The rocking only increased in intensity over time.

"—Captain. What is happening down here?"

"—Specter 1, we are currently experiencing technical malfunction of the grappling system, you will have to be dropped in forty seconds. The 54th Tactical Armoured Battalion will recover you and accompany the Shogun to Yokohama Base. Sorry for the inconvenience."

The new mission outline was given by the Captain and a countdown began for our eventual relinquish.

"Yuuhi-sama, Close your mouth and tighten the safety harness. We are going to be released soon." I reached out for Yuuhi's seatbelt and fastened it to protect her from the sudden G-force that happened a dozen seconds after my declaration.

—

"Your highness, are you unhurt?" The Shiranui settled on the side of a hill and glided roughly down to the surface.

"I am fine, Shirogane. More importantly, what will our steps be now?" Yuuhi was asking the right questions straightaway after landing.

"We are currently waiting for the Americans to pi—" A radio link was abruptly established. I concentrated on the muffed voice that was repeating itself.

"—I repeat, this is the United States Army 54th Tactical Armoured battalion. We are here to retrieve the UN Army 207th Armoured Battalion. Respond if you can hear this, over."

"—this is the commander of 207th Armoured Battalion. We just got dropped from the 34th transport unit. What is your current location?" It was somewhat strange for their response time to be this fast, I already had a few ideas pop up within my head. But none was worth acting on.

"What is the condition of Her Highness?" The other Eishi didn't answer right away.

"Her Highness is with me right now. What is your location?"

"We'll be waiting on the Tomei Highway ruins by Oyama. Rendezvous with us ASAP. Havoc 1 out."

"Copy that, Specter 1 out." The recovery team was about ten minutes away from us. It shouldn't be too much of a distance to cover.

"Your Highness, we will be meeting up with the 54th Tactical Battalion and they will escort us to Yokohama Base."

"I heard, Shirogane. Let us hurry to avoid wasting their time." Even with our current condition like this. Yuuhi still showed concern for the American Eishis.

 **Callsign, Havoc 1**

"This is Irony 1. I have visual confirmation on the HVT."

"This is Moses, copy. No deviation from mission plan, proceed. Use of lethal force is authorized, but execute with extreme caution. Do not let the prototype be damaged."

"Irony 1 copy."

 **Oyama, Tomei Highway ruins**

We travelled for nine minutes until the old town and three TSFs came into view.

"—this is specter 1 to Havoc 1. Where is the rest of your Battalion?" Only three American F-22As were nearby to greet us.

The leading TSF appeared somewhat different from the rest. There was some kind of melee weapon holstered on its back, a tool that was never seen with the Americans before.

Its camouflage was also abnormal, opting for almost pure black concealment paintjob than the regular greenish colouring for forest combat. And lastly, which was also the biggest root of my confusion. The F-22A in question had armour and weapon parts just somehow seemed wrong to me. Other than having a Melee Halberd, which is a big ass sword, just like my Type-74 PB Blade. It was carrying a totally different assault rifle with some kind of bayonet attached to the tip

Finally, I was pretty sure that its forearms were equipped with multi-purpose sheaths. It should be noted that at least four Mount-Pylons were present on that unit as well. My gut feeling was telling me a different message about their friendliness, and I fully intend on trusting it.

"—Havoc 1 here, the rest of the Platoon is currently engaging the rebel forces at Hakone. My squadron was ordered to evacuate Her Highness. The rest will follow once we secured her."

Without any method to deny or confirm his explanation since long range wireless communication was jammed, nothing can get through outside a two Kilometer radius.

"Do you have resupply containers? My fuel is running low."

"We have resupply containers waiting right here. Refuel your TSF and disembark your units. We have to verify Her Highness's identity." That was an unexpected order.

"Is there some problem? Her Highness isn't feelin—"

"It is alright, Shirogane. I have no difficulties with meeting the American Eishis." Yuuhi was placing too much trust in a unit that we just met. But then again, she only knew me for around two hours.

"We have reasons to believe that an imposer is pretending to be Her Highness. We just need to confirm her identity."

I felt a bit of unease by his words, even if Meiya somehow got found out as a fake, which was too early. They still shouldn't have any problems since both Meiya and Yuuhi were on the same side.

"Your Highness, are you sure about this?"

"Is there a problem, Shirogane?" I couldn't tell her my uncertainties about the Americans.

"Roger that, but your team have to dismount as well." It will be very upsetting if I were to exit my Shiranui and got shot up by F-22As.

"Of course, that's only reasonable." I opened my hatch and Helped Yuuhi to the ground. The F-22A Eishis also left their cockpit. However, before descending myself. I set up a safeguard in my Shiranui, just as insurance.

—

"I'm First Lieutenant Edward Anderson. Nice to meet you."

"First Lieutenant Shirogane Takeru. Same here, your attendant is very helpful." We saluted each other as equals in rank.

"Your Highness, it's an honour to escort you. As I said earlier, I am Edward Anderson of the United States Army 54th Tactical Armoured Battalion." The three soldiers bowed their head to Yuuhi.

"1st Lt. Anderson, thank you for your assistance in my nation's difficulty."

"There is no need for such graciousness, Your Highness, our check here is done. Please return with your escort to your TSF."

Yuuhi was way too trusting of others that she didn't even know before. As the Shogun of Japan, her conviction in the goodness of others was a fatal flaw.

Two things happened simultaneously the instant we showed our backs to the American Eishis. The butt of Anderson's gun almost smacked the back of my skull if I didn't block it with my left arm.

"Shit, knew it."

Mumbling a lone line to myself while deflecting his strike, I pulled my own sidearm from the right holster and fired the second his body lined up with my barrel. In point-blank situations like this, just tagging someone with a 9mm round would do considerable damage. As luck would have it, the shots I sent out collided on his stomach region.

"Arhga—"

Not giving my prey any second to react. I smacked him backwards with my pistol while reaching out to grab his right arm that held the weapon. Taking it for myself before sending a fast kick to his sides which knocked him off his feet. A final shot to the temple as he fell down to the ground sealed the fate of my miserable opponent.

"Yuuhi! GET DOWN!"

The other two remaining Eishis opened fire with no regard to Yuuhi's safety. However, luckily, before they were given the time to take careful aim with their pistols. The 36mm assault rifle of my Shiranui fired first, ending their unfortunate lives in split seconds.

"Ahhaaa, thank god for autopilot." Another almost useless feature of my new XM3 was advanced AI for the autopilot mode. But even with an upgrade, the AI still couldn't be compared to an actual Eishi, so the system was never on the front of my mind.

But having my machine move automatically could be very advantageous in the right situation. Like how it just saved our lives, placing that failsafe before leaving was the most brilliant idea I ever thought of.

"Yuuhi-sama, are you alright?" I stood back up on my feet before checking Yuuhi's health.

"…Ahha… I… I'm fine." It was only logical for an ordinary person to be left speechless after witnessing a firefight so personally. Even our Shogun was still young, some would call her too young to bear this amount of duty. And I would agree.

"Here, let me help yo— aargh!" A painful sensation zapped up my stomach the second I took Yuuhi's hand.

"Shirogane! You are injured!" A dark coloured spot under my plastic amour was expanding by the moment. A mark of internal bleeding contained under my skin sent a prickly zap up my nervous system, but no real damage was done. Whatever reactive material was used to make this suit saved my lucky ass.

"Argh… I'm fine, tis but a fresh wound… hehe" It wasn't too much of a big deal, the bullet must had ricocheted off my armour, and it left behind a bruise the size of an apple. But as long as nothing went through my body. It'll only take days to heal.

"Are you sure of your condition?"

"It's fine, really. I have already injected some painkillers so I'm operational. Please just rest yourself by that rock, Yuuhi-sama. I'll survey the situation."

"…What are you planning on doing?" Her worried stare made me feel a bit guilty for killing our attacker, even when they were the ones who assaulted us first. Was she condemning me for protecting her? I wasn't sure, but she clearly wasn't happy about witnessing death this closely.

"Yuuhi-sama, I know that you dislike the idea of bloodshed. But I am a soldier, and I have my duty to escort you safely. I have to search for whatever information they have that could explain their action. Please understand."

"…Very well, be careful, Shirogane." After some conflicting thoughts, Yuuhi decided to trust my judgment and excused herself away from the field.

—

Examining people's corpses wasn't that fascinating of an activity, but as someone who spilled more blood than any other soldier on this earth. I was even a veteran at salvaging from remains.

'What am I looking for again?' The cold, dead bodies carried nothing of importance. I dragged the three corpses off to the side, out of open space before I climbed aboard their TSFs. The two regular Raptors were empty of any potential clues as to the origin of these men. But the third one, the heavily modified surface fighter was different.

'This thing needs multiple passcodes? You kidding me, right? I don't have that kind of time." So instead of spending hours trying to hack this device, I sent my reliable "Sumika Virus" to go and destroy all firewalls and password protections.

The virus that I employed was something I got Kasumi and Sumika to develop for me a few loops back. Theoretically, it should be capable of hacking any computer system as long as it uses electrical power.

Two minutes passed until the system was seized for me to control. I dug hard and deep within the frame's database to find evidence that should be present if all was going according to plan.

"Wait… this is… capture me alive…? 'Information retrieved from Yokohama Base.' Damn it, sensei… was this what you wrote?" It was at this second when my confidence in my scheme skyrocketed to new heights.

The rebels' movement, the attack of the American Eishis, everything. My plan until now was flawed, fatality flawed. But with this new found info, the tide of this battle will rightfully be returned to me.

I would like to credit myself for conspiring this scheme on the spot and for bringing it to fruition. I grabbed my own tablet and transferred these data to my electric instrument. After descending the Raptor, I rendezvoused with Yuuhi by the side of the road.

—

 **Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Author's note**

If you felt like I was leading you on for the last chapter, then you would really feel like being led on this chapter. Another short one again. So the two day early release should be good enough, right? Maybe next chapter will also come earlier, still no promises. Although things could delay some later chapters, so I apologize in advance. Hopefully that doesn't happen, but hey. I don't control any of that.

I say another three or four chapters will finish of the coup arc. After that will be the next arc, I know what it is. But not telling. While my grammar and vocabulary is still pretty bad. I do think my storytelling is not too terrible.

So if you feel like making a review to tell me exactly how crap my engrish is, go ahead. So my view is still the same, if you like my story, review and favourite if you chose to. Although the competitive side of me is quite proud for the numbers when Muv-Luv fics are not the hottest out there. It's not like asking for reviews will get them anyway.

Then until next time, because I don't have a signature to write by the end. You all will get this. Aisdnfsiadfaosudfh sdioncasidbg

Editing and proofreading done by chad001. So many times I capitalized the first letter of your name, but I didn't so it's fine.


	14. The clash of ideals III

**Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **4:44 AM**

 **Oyama, Tomei Highway ruins**

"Shirogane, have you discovered the reason for their hostile actions?" Yuuhi was resting on a rock at the right height for sitting. I took my spot beside her on my two feet.

"Yeah, would you like to know what is currently happening?"

"Yes, if those men had any motive for their attack, I would need to know what their objective is." It would be a problem if Yuuhi wasn't interested, so since that she was; I needed a good way to start this disclosure.

"Alright, I think it's time to reveal some information. Do you remember about what I said earlier, the Alternative plans?"

"Is that what you said about your new Operating System?" Yuuhi still had recollection of our first conversation.

"Yes, the objective of the Alternative Plans… is to search for a way of establishing communication with the BETA." It should be normal for Yuuhi to know at least a glimpse of the Alternative plans.

"I do remember. It was purposed by the around 1966, was it not?"

"That's right, what else do you know about them, Yuuhi-sama?" Yuuhi was trying her best to recall old memoires. I knew she wasn't too involved in this project, still, some news must had slipped to the Shogun.

"The UN came to us with a request of building a military base over the Yokohama hive after its destruction. They said it was the latest step in the Alternative plan." No one could construct a base on Japan without the government's agreement, after all.

"We are currently on Alternative IV, the goal is to converse with the BETA using a non-carbon based pseudo-life form."

"Non-carbon… so would that be like a robot of sorts?" Even the Grand Shogun agreed that Sumika was a robot.

"Yeah, we named it the 00 unit. It's already completed and is currently an active member of the army. But that isn't the main point, Yuuhi-sama. The main purpo—"

Out of absolutely nowhere, a sudden explosion shook the earth and sent my mind into overdrive in an instant. A scalding fire raised to the night sky, a flame that just happened to originated from my Shiranui.

"Wha— Shot fired! Yuuhi-sama, we need to get out of here right away!" My Suit's connection with my frame got severed the moment my TSF was blown to bits.

"Are we under attack?!" Yuuhi was trying to keep her composure even during our dangerous situation.

"Damn it! They just had to go for my frame first!" It appeared that our combat proficiency was just reduced to zero. However, it was this desperate moment that another bright idea popped up.

"The Raptor! Please follow me, Yuuhi-sama!"

"What—?" I took Yuuhi by her hand and sprinted for the Raptor that was only a dozen meters apart from us. Good news too, the cockpit was still open for us two to enter.

"Yuuhi-sama, I will help you equip your seatbelts after we exit the hot zone. Please just hold on to me tightly for now."

"Then I shall rely on you once again, Shirogane." Yuuhi reached her arm around and hugged me by my neck. If we weren't about to be blown away at that time, I would have cracked a joke.

"What is this thing? The exterior resembled an F-22A, but this system is way different… this is a modified to behave like an YF-23… no, wait… 'YF-23 Arondight. Custom Prototype'…?" It took me a minute to process all this interesting discoveries.

"These stats… is this even more advanced than the Black Widow II?! Is this how much of a threat did those CIA guys see in me? Hehehe, fucking idiots." I cursed my breath so Yuuhi wouldn't perceive it.

Nevertheless, it was good news to me that I secured a TSF, even better was that this model was never seen before on the battlefield. I overrode the OS to accept my UN fortified suit.

Thankfully, most of the system was already taken by me, or else I'd have to hack through all those layers of firewalls like earlier. Normally the OS was programed to only allow the designated Eishi to pilot it, but I had a few tricks to bypass that protocol.

"Alright, I got full control. Who's trying to take us down now?" I projected the American combat data to my retina. Immediately, I saw eight markings of 'friendlies'. Four F-15E Strike Eagle and four Raptors didn't feel it was necessary to conceal their hostile intention in their attempt to bring me down.

"Got eight incoming, please hold on tight, Yuuhi-sama. This will get very bumpy very fast."

"Shirogane, will we have to fight against them?" No matter the reason, Yuuhi didn't enjoy seeing soldiers fighting each other. She also was uncertain about my chances at a one verse eight.

"Sorry, Yuuhi-sama. I'll see if I can spare some lives here and there. Please don't worry, this won't be difficult for me." My smug smile brought some reassurance to Yuuhi's doubts.

Unlike infantry combat where my techniques for non-lethal takedowns were limited, fighting in TSFs allowed me more control over my opponents. There were times when killing someone outright could prove to be more disadvantageous than simply disabling them.

"Come on then. Let's see what're we rolling with here…?" The weapon and equipment inventory showed itself for my viewing pleasure.

"FE133-PW-100 Jump Units? Wasn't this leftover from the XFJ? Whatever, what else have we got here? …A XCIWS-2B… melee Halberd… so it's a sword then. The… XAMWS-24 assault cannon, this thing looks pretty powerful with the extra ammo capacity. Also comes with a bayonet just like I saw earlier."

I mumbled the catalogue of attachments and gears to myself, what this TSF got loaded with were just too overwhelming. The CIA surely didn't think this through when they issued for this prototype to be deployed.

"Two multi-purpose sheaths with Close Combat Daggers, as I thought. And finally, the American advanced sensor package, with the radar and electronic stealth tech. wait… what is this? Active stealth functional system, wasn't this kept on American soil only? This is awesome~"

The hyped teenager that enjoyed all his robot and mecha action was resurfacing within my heart. Just when I was prepared to tear apart the incoming hostiles, they made themselves known to my new machine by rounding the hills ahead with eight units.

"Let's go, I'll judge how this machine can burn the world."

—

Whoever modified this YF-23 had great taste, I'll admit that much.

The manoeuvrability was almost two times better than the standard F-22A. With the raw engine power of whatever P&W Jump Unit that was added here, I easily dashed around two Raptors that were locking onto me.

Drawing the big American blade that was attached to the Mount Pylon to my back, those two frames were cut in halves without given any time for retaliation.

The name of the sword was a mouthful, but its straighter design and balanced center allowed a perfect combination of power and control. Three more F-15s turned up to my four o'clock and opened fire. Pulling the assault cannon over my shoulders, I disabled two with precise shots to their guns, head and legs.

The last target challenged me too much so a spray of metal to the cockpit of that poor bastard was in order. This rifle had about thirty percent more rounds than their standard ones, plus a bayonet on the end of my rifle to boot. I sliced the main arms clean off another Strike Eagle with the said knife and followed up with a side kick using the ankle blades that emerged from the knees.

"Hahaha! This baby is amazing! I should remember to thank the CIA and their infinite budget the next chance I get. Yuuhi-sama, how are you doing?" I almost neglected her wellbeing during my spree.

"I am fine, Shirogane. Please concentrate on your task at hand."

"Will do."

The enemy units realized they weren't dealing with just a run-of-the-mill Eishi when another Raptor caught by my blade was severed from its waist down and neck up to seven different parts.

The Americans might have thought that the open terrain would be favourable to them with their greater number when we started our firefight. Unfortunately for them, the truth was made apparent that an open field only meant more room for my navigation skills to be put to their fullest as the agents were picked off with no cover to cower behind.

"Ahahahaha! Let's dance!" With flawless manipulation of my Jump Units, the raining metal only served to waste of military funds of the CIA personnel.

I cleaved, lanced, pommeled and shot down all those that dared to stand in my way. Some lucky frames were spared from a fate of doom while others that were more difficult to disable were terminated without second thoughts.

The final F-15E fired off his weapon in anguish, hoping for only one solid hit on my newfound beauty. However, I denied his wish without leniency as the combat dagger fired out from my arm sheath.

Like an unambiguous arrow with only the bulls' eye in mind. The large knife struck the very center of the final surface fighter's head, knocking it down to the ground for me to finish it off.

After not even three minutes, two Flights of hostiles were ravaged in record time. The modified YF-23's pure capabilities far overtook that of a normal F-22A. I daresay even that of a regular YF-23, but only by a slight margin. If the Americans didn't drop that machine's production when they did. I couldn't even imagine how much stronger their army would become.

"All enemies have been neutralized. We should relocate before any reinforcements catch up, Yuuhi-sama."

—

Flying us away from the battleground was my first objective, the second objective was to begin setting up my plan for execution.

"Is there really no for way me to end this conflict?" Breaking the silence by mumbling these lines to herself, her gaze drifted in the direction of those TSFs I left behind.

"Yuuhi-sama, although I don't thi—" My speech was cut off when the radio let out a noise, indicating an incoming message. The times I got interrupted by calls were way too much for that day.

"—Moses to all operatives. We are moving to stage seven of operation Roswell. The 66th Battalion that is surrounded by the insurgents has been granted a sixty minute ceasefire using an imposter Shogun. They most likely will attempt to negotiate with the rebels. Our technicians within Sendai will be leaking the update to the Insurgents in fifteen. All operatives in the area, make sure no conclusion could be reached."

That was the instant when the CIA just shot their own foot with my assistance. Hacking into their secure channel was worth the effort, energy and time I put in.

"…Shirogane, did that man just say… Sendai?" Yuuhi aspect was filled with trauma, a portion of it slowly turned into fear and misery, while I retrieved the tablet that fell off to the side during the fighting.

"Yuuhi-sama… please, take a look at this." My PDA had the data for all Agents currently infiltrating the government. Normal operatives like those guys would never have access to such classified data. But this frame was a data gateway, and there was no data I couldn't hack.

"What am I examining, Shirogane?"

"I think, it's better to see for yourself." Her hands trembled a little as she received the device from me.

The expression she tried to hide was painfully obvious. Her pupils widened in her first moment of shock, followed by an instinctive scream which was stopped when Yuuhi covered her own mouth. The Shogun of our nation should never be in dismay, then again, many rules were broken already as is.

"What is this… how can this be! So many… so many of my… Shirogane, answer me truthfully, is this information accurate with no intention to deceive me?" Yuuhi's stare was powerful, it filled me with sadness just thinking of a reply for her.

"…Yes, this intel is recovered from their databank. I am sure you are aware of this as well. One of the reasons for our government's incompetence is due to the high number of foreign spies."

"Is… is this the degree of my failure…? Shirogane… please… open the cockpit for me." Wishing to conceal herself in her moment of weakness, Yuuhi asked for some privacy that I had no problem with granting.

"If you so wish, just please stay close, alright?" Her head silently dipped with grief as I assisted her unto the rope for descending.

I left Yuuhi alone for her to grieve over the state of this country outside. The PDA had names of all the agents planted within the government by the CIA, I would say about thirty percent of the provisional government was compromised at that time.

Nevertheless, there were still jobs left to do. Since this YF-23 was furnished with an anti-jamming system. I called Yokohama Base for my expected update.

"—this is Specter 1 to HQ. Confirmation code: Bravo, six, six, Victor, Mike, two. Requesting top priority connection to Professor Kouzuki."

"—this is HQ, confirmed. Connecting now." Yuuko-sensei's pretty face made itself known on my screen a few seconds later.

"Hallo, haven't seen you in a while now. How're you doing?" The innocent smirk by sensei was the main cause to my instant mood swing.

"Sensei, I got to give it to you. Your help really saved my plan. I still got a few more questions, if you don't mind." I returned her smile with a sniff of mockery.

"Of course not. Can't have you take all the glory now, can we? Before that though, is Her Highness safe?"

"Yeah, she's with me right now. But she can't hear what we're saying." I lowered my voice as a precaution.

"So what you want to know?" Driving our talk back to its root, I had a few questions that required answering.

"What are the exact lines you have me listed under in our databank?"

"Let me pull it up here… ah, got it. Here's your new resume. 'Subject: Shirogane Takeru. Role: final product of Alternative IV.' That's it." It was amazing how much just some little words could do.

"That's about right, CIA and their crazy brainstorming got me on their hit list in milliseconds after seeing that. Those idiots, taking our bait so easily."

"If something is hidden behind four layers of firewall, a coded network and a self-destruct failsafe system, it must be valuable. Logically speaking, that is." That sure was where the CIA put their money, and logic was definitely not to their aid.

"Mixing in a single lie in a field of classified information does the job." Yuuko-sensei proudly nodded back.

By intentionally leaking all of our top secret intel to the CIA during their own hacking attempt, we got them to trust that one lie, buried deep in what was supposed to be their goldmine.

It was a dangerous bet. If they saw through our trap, their counterplan that could easily cripple us was almost unavoidable. We played this absurd game of espionage with the Alternative V supporters for weeks now, stabbing each other under the table while keeping a friendly front in the name of saving earth.

"But it was a risky gamble, the most precarious one yet. Their hackers still had gotten a lot of data out of us. Since we couldn't stop it, altering the information was all I could do. We cannot afford to fail now. You know what to do, right?" Sensei's warning was taken close to heart by me.

"Yeah, my old plan was too unsteady to be put to action. So your assistance is greatly appreciated." While it was annoying that sensei didn't notify me about her own agenda, the end trumps the means any day of the week.

"You're welcome, Shirogane. But there's nothing else I can help you with. Bringing down the government won't be a walk in the park, you know?" I sighed wordlessly at the reminder of my future steps.

"Don't make me out to be some terrorist, sensei. I'm simply reforming this country."

"Yeah, right. Forgot about that." Yuuko-sensei's added sarcasm proved to irk me more so than I would have favoured.

"I'm doing this for us, remember? As things are now, the Americans, and thus Alternative V still have too much control. I prefer if they have absolutely zero say in anything from here on out."

"I know that, of course I know. But you're just setting up the Shogun like this. They don't need her alive, it would actually be more helpful if she died somewhere in this war. And now that they know your name, they most likely would want your head as well."

The fact was laid out neatly on the table. If Yuuhi died, the CIA would win. And even if she didn't, the CIA would still win.

"That's why I'll be removing them. If we want to crush Alternative V, that agency has to go."

"Then you would be really screwed without my help." Yuuko-sensei was very pleased with herself for covering my back.

"I can't deny my mistake, I was too optimistic about their reaction. My original plan probably won't be enough to sway Yuuhi anyhow, but having the agency attack us really manifested their aggression."

Just showing Yuuhi was I had in store wouldn't be enough. I wanted to paint her a clear picture of the good guys and the bad guys. Sure, it'll be from my sole perspective, but no one else's opinion counted anyway.

"So you're really doing it then? You're planning on reshaping this nation?"

"Yes. I will grant the people of Japan their wish." With no sign of hesitation whatsoever, I indicated my goal. A good willed intent on the surface, but the purpose behind it was far from benefiting the public.

"If that's how you want to see it." Sensei held her face with her left hand and smiled wickedly into the camera.

"We're fighting a war against an enemy that wiped out more than eighty percent of our population. If we're to come out on top, I need this country to be strong enough as to never bow down to another's demands."

"But controlled by you instead, right?" Yuuko-sensei kept adding to my sentence, still, she was correct on her point.

"If I must take this country, then so be it." This time, her evil grin evolved to full out laughter. Instinctively, I smiled with the same mischief.

"Hahaha…! I'm working with a World-Conqueror-To-Be be here. And I thought you're only a soldier."

"I am, I won't be the one ruling Japan. I'll only be preparing the stage for her. She'll be free to act however she wishes." While speaking ambiguously wouldn't mask the subject, I still enjoyed hiding some facts.

"As long as you deem it acceptable, right…? You really are something else, Shirogane Takeru. Many men wish for vast amounts of power, but very rarely does one actually seeks to claim it." Sensei slanted back in her chair. Her expression was that of anticipation, no doubt looking forward to my result.

"I know very well of one who also does. But I won't give this country to anyone else." If **YAMATO DAMASHII** over there wants to challenge my position, he can come over and personally bite me.

"What a power hungry time traveller you are. But talking about your dreams won't grant them. What's next on the lineup?"

"The Prime Minster arrived, right? How is he?" I changed our topic as sensei suggested.

"He is still the same old hardass stubborn geezer as always. Nothing new here." Sensei turned back after carefully observing her surrounding before firing that insult.

"But he is safe here, only the General, me, some of our guys and his bodyguards knows about his secret escape. It's not like the insurgents are starting a witch hunt for this one man in the capital, anyway."

"True, as long as we have the Shogun. Their interest won't be on him. So did he bring me my list?" That record of names was the major reason I assisted Prime Minster Sakaki in keeping his life.

"That he did. I'm transmitting the package now, your TSF is secure to receive?"

"Yeah, we good here." A few seconds was how long it took before the document was acquired by my YF-23.

"You checked, right? What is in here?"

"The list of all of the crimes committed by high government officials. Fraud, many cases of political scandals, embezzlements of nation properties, etc. Also, unsurprisingly, a lot of people are taking bribes from offshore accounts that all traced back to the US." It seemed my delivery arrived in good condition.

"Whoever sees this list will know that Japan is done for if nothing changes." That was the final card needed in my grand scheme, the rest depended on the performance of all my actors.

"The Prime Minister isn't a bad person. How did he react to the new Alternative plans?"

"He liked it…? That's not the right word, he definitely accepted Alternative IV over V. Normally the Prime Minister of a country doesn't like the idea of it getting blown up."

"That's true, Prime Minister Sakaki knew Alternative IV since the beginning. But our progress should leave no doubt in his mind." People wouldn't want to support something if it has a real possibility of failing, after all.

"Yeah, he said if our plan takes shape. He'll cooperate with us no problem."

"Good, now for our side. I'm sure you know already. But the CIA sent some agents in an attempt to capture me. They're all mostly dead now, the survivors won't exit the jamming zone in time."

"More merciful than my assumption, Shirogane. Thought for sure some wives will be receiving flags in their next mail." That was a borderline offensive joke, but a funny one nonetheless.

"Many will be, but some just got lucky."

"Anything else out of your expectation?"

"They rebel's movements caught me off guard, but only because my brain was deactivated at that time. The CIA probably leaked our info they found just to further the chaos. Nothing special there. However, the bad thing is their high command doubtlessly knows about the situation by now. That's actually quite distressing, do we have the cannon ready?"

"Yeah, Isumi and her team secured it about an hour ago. If they really hit us like you said, we'll be ready." Preparation was the sure way to victory before any battle.

"That's good. The enemy sent their last transmission was about twenty minutes ago. After that, all communication with my unit got cut." Knowing our exposure was inevitable. I recorded the final order this unit received before its occupation by me. I played said audio a few minutes earlier to prompt Yuuhi's reaction.

"Now that you brought it up, what are you using to contact me with? The signal origin is different." I surveyed around my new cockpit, thinking of a good answer.

"Let's just say, I got this nice parting gift from those agents." Another chuckle took form on sensei's ever smug, but beautiful face.

"Whatever, don't lose this fight if you want to keep that, got it?" I signalled sensei to move our conversation along with a wave of my hands.

"Yeah, yeah. Everything is going according to keikaku." Sensei shot me a very strange look before sighing into her palm.

"I'm not going to work with you here." And then she just spoiled my perfect setup.

"Welp, nothing left to report."

"Then I wish for your success, Shirogane. This will be the final push to place Alternative IV into humanity's future. Even if you have to manipulate the Shogun for it, you must see it through to the end. " The call was disconnected after no more chitchat was in order.

—

"Are you okay now, Yuuhi-sama?" I descended my fighter to pick her up. Yuuhi's expression showed no sign of joy, the solemnity that clouded her mood was thicker than ever.

"I am fine, Shirogane. The tears I cry for this country will not help heal it. The only aid I can provide this nation is to end this war as soon as possible." I checked up on Yuuhi a few minutes following my call with Yuuko-sensei. The tear marks left above her cheeks were dim, but still evident on closer inspection.

"Then let's go. We should hurry to Yokohama." I assisted Yuuhi with entering the prototype.

"I have yet to receive anymore news regarding our attackers. Have you discovered anything else?" Yuuhi broke the quietness once she was comfortable in my lap.

"I have, as you know, they're mediums from a certain American agency. Their mission was in all likelihood to intercept us and accuse the insurgents for any accidents that could take place."

"But why would they attack us like that without considering the repercussion?"

"That's… mostly my fault, I would say." It must be confusing for Yuuhi, apparent by her expression of astonishment.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Let's finish our earlier topic, about the Alternative project. Alternative IV, it is a plan directed by the vice-commander of Yokohama Base. I am a core member of the Special Task Force for Alternative IV. Like I said before, our goal is to find a way to understand or communicate with the BETA while setting up an anti-BETA intelligence network."

"We'll gather data on the layout of each and everything Hive, their structure, the number of BETA distribution within. Vital intelligence that will no doubt help us win this war." My faith in Alternative IV was strong, and Yuuhi should also see my point.

"Then why is that there are others that wish to hinder your project?"

"Because if we are ever to fail, what comes after is the total devastation of our planet. Have you heard about Alternative V, Yuuhi-sama?"

"Yes, but in its name only."

"…One hundred thousand people, they'll be the only ones that are selected to flee Earth using immigrant spaceships. The rest of humanity will stay back on earth and fight against BETA down to every last man, woman and child. We would nuke this planet with as much G-Bombs as it will take to destroy the BETA." The Humourless conversation only took a darker heading.

"Only a hundred thousand…! Do they plan to give up our planet?!" Yuuhi's face carried on a deep frown when considering the fallouts of such action coming to being.

"Yeah, I can't tell you what could happen, but I will never allow this disaster come to past. I will do everything in my power to complete Alternative IV."

"But why would others wish for such a catastrophic end?"

"There are those who see the total annihilation of the BETA as the only way. They wish to shield their own nation at the cost of others, while also laying down the foundation for their rule over the post BETA world." Anyone could notice the obvious fingers all training on America.

"Shirogane, what is the current progress of Alternative IV?" I assumed that Yuuhi arrived at the same conclusion on Alternative V as I did.

"Our success is great, but our adversary still stands tall before us."

"Who are those that oppose you?" Hook, line and sinker was a speciality of mine.

"There are people in America who wishes to stop us in favour of Alternative V. they're the same people who organized this coup, also the ones who opened fire on us. It's all to slow down our progress and take control of Yokohama Base through the Imperial Government." Yuuhi was again absorbed within her mind.

"Are you saying those that are in charge of my country are attempting to bring such a tragedy to reality?"

"We believe so." A simply answer was also an honest one. Yuuhi slid around very uncomfortably within the small quarter.

"We are very pressured by the Alternative V supporters as of now. If they succeed in this coup and take parts of the government, I don't know what they will do to us."

"That future… must not come to being."

"There is actually another important fact I left out. About an hour ago, the Prime Minister safely arrived at Yokohama Base. And he brought along some information on our current government with him."

"So Sakaki Kurechika-dono is safe, that certainly calms my heart. What is the news then?" I didn't want to manipulate Yuuhi to this extent, but this was all for the good of our future.

"Please take a look at this, Yuuhi-sama." I connected my newfound data to the PDA that she held until a few minutes ago.

"This… is…" Yuuhi was silent as she read through the names of those who did were driven by their own greed instead of for the sake of this country. Once she finalized her thoughts, Yuuhi stared into my eyes with determination, but also a heavy cloud of regret.

"Shirogane, do you swear that all these information is the truth?"

"I swear by the name of the United Nations, that nothing I presented to Your Highness contains any lie." She was even more depressed by my promise, but her conviction stabled even more.

"Then tell me your goal, Shirogane. Even if Japan is currently in turmoil. I cannot allow myself to be exploited without understanding your objective." Anger wasn't one of the emotions that our Shogun demonstrated, but nevertheless, I had anticipated that she would figure out my intentions.

"Your Highness, would you believe me when I say that it's to save this world and my friends?"

"…You are not a man to betray those who he holds dear and your valour toward humanity's future is strong. I trust you, Shirogane. I just want to know what is that you seek." Yuuhi's features softened, she was still trusting me even when I had an ulterior motive.

"Your Highness, I have no request to ask you for. However, I only wish that you can choose the best option available, not only for the nation of Japan, but also for our world." Even for a child, the connotation of my lies could be grasped.

"Must I… must I pick a side no matter what?" Yuuhi didn't wish for any more casualties, but she could recognize the supposed justice behind each cause. The coup will end, but she can decide how its finale will play out.

"There are times when a path that satisfies each and every one's wishes doesn't exist… yet, as individuals who exist in this time, we must follow our own beliefs, so that we won't leave regrets on the trail behind us."

So many lessons were taught to me by Yuuhi. So many times, she had helped me when my friends perished. I wanted her to decide for herself the outcome of our battle.

"But those who lead carry responsibilities with them. I cannot choose a path merely for my own benefit."

"But you're not only the Shogun, Yuuhi-sama. Can you deny that you are not also a young girl?" Yuuhi was startled by my statement.

"I… I am the Shogun of this country before my own being." She held the same, brave and yet foolish ideals, just like Meiya.

"The Shogun of Japan is only a title, the Shogun themselves change often. No one is capable of becoming the perfect ruler as long as that person is still human. The leaders are given great duty, but also great power along with their obligation. Everyone deserves the right to choose for themselves. How can the Shogun guide the people when she is not like the people that she is leading?"

"Shirogane… are you telling me to abandon my duties?"

"No, I'm telling you to accept yourself as part of the Shogun. You should do what you feel is right for this nation, you as a girl, and as the Shogun." My wish for Yuuhi to recognize herself hopefully won't be a wasted effort.

"I… I have abandoned my past self long ago. As the Shogun of this country, I live for this country."

"Then tell me, what does the Shogun wish to protect?" There was no necessity for me to ask a question which I knew the answer to.

"The people, the people of this country… the country that lives in the heart of the people."

"Then the people will accept you and your decision, Yuuhi-sama. The Shogun represents this nation, and this nation lives in the heart of the people, does it not?"

"But how can I be sure that what I choose for the people will benefit the people? I cannot see all the possibilities ahead. My verdict could even bring about even more suffering than what my people have to currently endure." It was only natural to waver when one's conclusion will affect the lives of thousands.

"Because no one knows for sure what could take place tomorrow, that is why hope is the only thing people can rely on. Our fight against the invaders has reduced Japan to this state, but the Japanese people have yet to despair. Why do you think that is?" Even without answering me, Yuuhi understood the truth in her heart.

"That is because of you, Yuuhi-sama. You are the Shogun, the people can find new hope knowing your existence. Even if there is no real justice in this world. Your justice, will be the justice of Japan." It was Yuuhi that helped me with finding my way in the past, now was the time to return that favour.

She only sat there, for one minute… for two minutes… until a long, unexciting four minutes later. Her head was brought up to stare me back, eyes filled with her newly founded resolve.

"…I have make my decision, I can only hope that my people can understand, and for this choice to bring us a better future."

My own emotions were spilt in two at that moment. One side of me was joyful that Yuuhi recognized my opinion and decided to act upon it. However, at the same time, I felt guilty for essentially moulding her to serve my purpose. Even if that basis was for the good of humanity.

"Where shall we head for then, Yuuhi-sama?" But my plan cannot be stopped, I will not allow any deviation.

"Let us go back, back so I can end this." The curtains of this coup will be drawn, and when it does. I'll be the one standing victorious above it all.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Izu Skyline, Near Sukumoyama**

"I'm Irma. Irma Thesleff… and you are?"

"Tamase Miki —ah, I mean… Miki Tamase." Sumika and Kasumi were wandering around when they encountered Miki-san and an American Eishi.

"Miki… hmm. Maybe it's a bit rude to say this, but in Finland that'd be a boy's name."

"Eh? A… boy? That's kinda… a weird feeling… eheheh." Sumika was told by Takeru-chan to find a Finnish Eishi within the ranks of the 66th Battalion. And here before her should be the one that she seeks.

" _Is it this person, Kasumi-chan?_ " The duo was told to find and eliminate some sort of hypnotic software installed on 2nd Lt. Irma's fortified suit.

" _Yes, please start._ " Sumika did as instructed and examined the Eishi's pilot system.

"Hey, Miki, if humanity beats the BETA someday, and my country gets rebuilt… come to Finland with your father. I'll show you around."

"—really? I'll definitely go! Ah! …but isn't Finland really far away?"

"It is, but Russia's the only country you have to cross. It's the closest part of Europe to Japan." The two Eishis were sharing a friendly conversation about their home countries.

"Really? And you know about Japan too… you're amazing, 2nd Lt. Irma!"

"You're the only country who ever defeat our archenemy, Russia, so a lot of people in Finland are interested in and feel close to Japan. That and we both lost in the Second World War… uhuhu."

Sumika searched through the structure of 2nd Lt. Irma's suit. She tried her best to concentrate on the inconsistency caused by outside communication interference. The task ordered by Takeru was more tough than she first assumed. But when it comes to command from her precious Takeru-chan, failure was not an option.

"Haaaa, Miki's embarrassed now since she doesn't know much about Finland~"

"That's why I'd like you to come visit. Okay? You promise?"

"Yes, I promise!" A thought flickered through Sumika's mind. She wondered if Takeru-chan would take her on a vacation one day as well.

" _How long, Sumika-san? Someone is coming._ " The presence of another person was sensed by the 00 unit as well.

" _Just a little bit more…_ " Sumika was done with her task besides deleting the hypnosis signal that was stored in 2nd Lt. Irma's earpiece.

"Then… let's finish things quickly. This fighting between humans… and the war against the BETA."

"…Okay."

"And until then, neither of us will die… okay?"

"Yes!" Sumika was happy for Miki who found a friend in this ominous situation.

"Good… I should go then. It's almost time for my shift."

" _Sumika-san, she is leaving._ "

" _Just need to put that there… and… we're done!_ " A failsafe was added by her just in case the hypnosis program gets reactivated by a manual override.

"Ah, okay… Second Lieutenant, umm… it was fun talking to you. Thank you very much."

"I had fun too. Don't forget your promise now."

"Okay!" The two separated from their meeting. Sumika and Kasumi also took their exit once their work was finished.

—

"Is this the Major's TSF?"

"Yes." The bunny duo arrived at their next objective.

"Did Takeru-chan say to hack this machine?"

"Yes."

Sumika focused on the structure of the machine. At first glance, she didn't discover anything out of place. However as she dug deeper within the OS, weapon system and software, mistakes started to appear.

She only noticed a few things like broken 'doors' and 'windows' originally. But as she went even further, a big 'mistake' made itself apparent. Something was planted deep down in the system. Sumika removed it by using her 'Drill Milky Punch!' on a computer program, which wouldn't be logical in any form. Still, that never stopped Sumika from achieving anything before.

"I think I got the problem fixed. Whatever it was, it's gone now!"

"Good job, Sumika-san."

"Yaaay!" Kasumi inserted as much liveliness as she could into a high-five with Sumika.

"Agaa…" Kasumi rubbed her palm while following behind her much more cheerful friend.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Izu**

"Come on! Get out the way, idiots!" I was shouting nonsensically as squads of insurgent units fell under my feet.

Even without the XM3, this improved Black Widow was serving me just as marvelous as my old Shiranui. America tech wasn't viewed as the best of our world without any good reason.

The frame boost jumped over a small hill and caught three Gekishins belonging to the rebels by surprise. I took aim in midair for the unit furthest away from my position and fired. Its arms and sub-arms all got blown to bits within seconds of our engagement.

The two unharmed fighters elevated their own rifles in an attempt to intercept me. Their hot lead was dodged without a hitch by my new TSF, two surface jumps, some fancy footwork and an accurate calculation of trajectory was all it took for me to bring down both flights of TSFs.

"How long, Shirogane?"

"That depends on… everything, Yuuhi-sama. But the estimate is around another twenty minutes."

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Izu Skyline, Near Sukumoyama**

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi, I do not believe that breaking through with sheer force would bring positive result." Maj. Walken rejected Tsukuyomi's suggestion of engaging the rebels.

"Then what can we do? The chance of reinforcements arriving in time is low, we only have ten more minutes until the hour is up." Three of the Platoon Leaders were standing around, considering any possible method of breaking free from their encirclement.

"Major, if I may." Meiya interrupted the discussion between superiors.

"You're… Cadet Mitsurugi. You may speak." The cadets were allowed to unwind since both the 66th Battalion and the 173th Battalion took guard duty.

"If our current objective is to escape from this siege, then I believe it's best for me to speak with the insurgents as the Shogun. To ask them to surrender." Meiya's proposal was taken much more positively by Maj. Walken compared to Tsukuyomi.

"Cadet Mitsurugi, do you know what could happen if the negotiation breaks down?" The first and only question from Maj. Walken.

"I do, and I am prepared for that as well."

"Cadet Mitsurugi! I cannot permit you to do such a thing!" Tsukuyomi took this offer with great dismay.

"First Lieutenant, would you like to explain your reasoning?" The Major had already mentally agreed to Meiya's idea. He also thought that it would be the best method, he just couldn't be the first to ask Meiya since she was only a UN cadet.

"If the negotiation were to fail, the rebels would attack the cadet's unit first and foremost. That could also mean that they could realize that the real Shogun has already escaped to safety, which could only decrease our chance at evacuating if they were to give chase."

What Tsukuyomi pointed out sounded like solid arguments on the surface, sadly the base for her disagreement was extremely weak.

"I am going to be blunt here. If she failed to persuade the rebels, we still have a good chance at escaping when the cadet distracts them. If they were to capture her, they wouldn't realize that she is a fake until after we escaped."

"While this is unsightly, for us to use a cadet as bait. I think this is the best solution available. The ceasefire offer; while by an imposter, was still offered by the Shogun. If we were to break that, the backlash from the Japanese citizen could be very unfavourable."

Maj. Walken's opinions held much stronger points. Tsukuyomi could only stand silent over her inability to protect the one that she was ordered to watch over.

"I…" Meditating as hard as she could didn't bring along any passable ideas to The Royal Guard.

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. If I may speak."

"Go ahead, Cadet Mitsurugi." Tsukuyomi knew that the plan Meiya offered was the best course of action. However, that could mean the duty she was assigned to might end in failure in the near future.

"As the Major had said, convincing the rebels to lower their weapons would be the most propitious result. And even if I cannot persuade them, I can still buy us valuable time. Also, this is my responsibility, as the one who offered this ceasefire."

"…I have no counterarguments to your point, Cadet Mitsurugi. However, do you seriously understand the meaning of your action?"

"I believe that as someone with my destiny, this is the only task that I can accomplish. If I cannot complete my duty that I carried with me for this life, if I am not able to be of any use here… that would only be a fate worse than death." To avoid the others from taking too much notes. Meiya deliberately changed the topic to a personal one with her abstruse speech.

"That is nonsense, cadet Mitsurugi! Your destiny does not exist here! There is no duty here that you must achieve. Your role ended when the setting sun remained high above the sky over the capital." Correspondingly, Tsukuyomi spoke in enigma about the mission that was assigned to her by the Shogun herself.

"That is not true… when I trusted him with my own life, I believed that he will protect me no matter the time… my mission for being here, is to protect those that are important to us. I already promised that man. I believe that is the implication of my blade." Meiya-san lowered her hands and gripped her short sword unconsciously. The blade that Takeru bestowed her.

"Meiy— Cadet Mitsurugi… did that man gift you with this wakizashi?" Tsukuyomi noticed Meiya's new gear when the met yesterday at Yokohama Base. She never bothered to ask her about her new blade until this time.

"I was tasked with the obligation to be a shadow, a hidden life without any beginning or end. But what he saw in me was different, that man asked for me to offer my life to him."

"He swore to guide and protect my life with more significance than his own. And before his departure, he tasked me with the duty of a shield, to defend those who matter to us in his place. Even if he cannot be present right now, I still carry our promise with me."

"This sword will only be drawn to cut down those who stand in my way. My shield will not allow any harm to befall those around us." Meiya trusted Takeru when there was nothing for her to trust him on.

"Cadet Mitsurugi… is he really that important to you?"

"My life… I now carry two destinies along. Some could view that as treacherous to my cause. But I too, now hold the wish to live for myself." Meiya was the Shogun's shadow, yet at the same time, she decided to be a woman who breathed for Takeru.

"…Then I see no reasons to object. I shall pray that your expectation will not be of waste." There was nothing Tsukuyomi would be unsatisfied by after hearing such a confession.

"But still… such an unclear, cryptic personal discussion." As pointed out by Maj. Walken. Meiya declaration of love was heard by all those that were in attendance.

"Ahha… Sir, my apologies for that." Meiya lowered her head to hide the embarrassment. 2nd Lt. Irma giggled quietly, but not quite enough to conceal herself.

"I'm not sure whether that was simply Japanese poeticism… or intentionally obfuscated… however, I will not obstruct emotions between young ones." A few more chuckles emerged from the Eishis behind Maj. Walken.

"…Thank you, Major." Meiya could only be grateful that her sister and the target of her affection weren't there to witness her bashfulness.

"Now to outline the details. The objective of this operation is the extraction of all friendly Platoons. No man will be left behind. First, we will split into two groups: the main unit and the bait unit. The bait unit will consist of Cadet Mitsurugi's TSF, plus a few escort to increase believability. Now, those escorts will be—"

"—Major-dono… Cadet Ayamine volunteers to be the bait unit escort." Ayamine was brave enough to cut off a Major.

"…What did you say?" Maj. Walken was the first to react. Everyone's shock and surprise soon followed after.

"—W-wait a minute, what are you thinking?" Sakaki just had shared a rare experience breaking regulation together with Ayamine.

"…Everyone has things they have to do… and we should end this battle as soon as possible."

"Which is why I— that's not the point!" Sakaki must also wished to join the escort team as well, but Ayamine took the first call.

"Stop it, Kei-san, Chizuru-san. We have our own roles to play. I understand your feelings, but that won't be what Takeru-chan would wish for. Don't forget, he told us to find our reasons for being here. Do the two of you want that reason to be this?" Sumika rejected Ayamine and Sakaki's offer with rationality. The two backed down and apologized for their interruption.

"As I was saying, the escort units should be 2nd Lt. Kagami and 2nd Lt. Yashiro. Sergeant Jinguuji will be in charge of the cadets. Since our American forces would never be allowed to guard the Shogun, it would only make sense for the high ranking Japanese soldiers to take that task." Maj. Walken's balanced role designation made the most sense compared to any other plan.

"Then our Honour Guard unit would be most necessary, Major."

"That is the most valid place for you, First Lieutenant." It was to no one's disbelief that Tsukuyomi opted to accompany Meiya.

"The bait unit will consist of four TSFs: Cadet Mitsurugi's Takemikazuchi. With the escorts being 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi's Takemikazuchi, 2nd Lt. Kagami's Shiranui and 2nd Lt. Yashiro's Shiranui."

"Understood!" The nominated Eishis called in unison.

"Get your TSFs ready to move out and standby for further orders— dismissed!"

—

 **Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Author's note**

So when I said the coup arc will take another 3 or 4 chapters, I lied. Probably 2 or 3 from here on forth. But I'm probably lying about that as well. Also this should be the reveal of most things, you see a problem, tell me, thanks.

What else… I finished watching the "Kimi no Nozomu Eien" Anime, if you don't know about it I won't blame you. That animation though, put Fate or Kara no Kyoukai to shame. Anyway, it's like the backstory to Hayase and Suzumiya. If you're interested, check it out and stuff.

Other than that, any questions, comments or whatever, leave a review for me if you're free. Favourite and all that stuff.

Not much to write here today, I see you all later, thank you very much for reading this story.

Editing and proofreading done by chad001. You expect a joke here every time? Not happening.

I still don't own anything Age owns.

P.S. Can't believe I forgot, if you're reading the update today, on October 22, 2015. Well, you're know what that means anyway. So I will say no more.


	15. The clash of ideals IV

**Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **05:01 Am**

 **Izu Skyline, Near Sukumoyama**

"—Hunter 1 to all units, the plan is as follows. Sixty seconds before the ceasefire ends, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi will announce our intent to negotiate with the rebels on an open channel. If the enemy agrees, we continue to Plan A. If they refuse, we move straight to Plan B. Plan B is virtually identical to Plan A after Phase 2…"

Even for someone that should have nerves of steel, Meiya was still anxious and tense about the upcoming mission. She didn't fear death, she just cannot allow herself to die. Her hair was retied to mimic that of her sister's, which wasn't too different from her own style.

"…Now, for the rest of Plan A, starting with positions. Cadet Mitsurugi disguised as Her Highness will be in UN Army TSF Stinger 3. During negotiations, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi's 1901 will accompany them as escort…"

The overall strategy had Hunter 2, 3 and Heat 5 to 8 covering from sniper positions on the surrounding mountain tops. The rest of the Hunter Battalion will form diamond one around the cadets.

"The time limit for negotiations will be twenty minutes, Cadet Mitsurugi. Buy us as much time as you can."

"—copy that!" Meiya answered when her assigned objective was ordered.

"Once the twenty minutes are up, Plan A will move to Phase 2. We will crush a portion of the insurgents and break through their formation. Also, if negotiations break down at any time, we will move immediately to Phase 2. Be aware of that." The lack of a real Shogun made their escape plan less complicated as a result.

"In that event, 173th Battalion will move to cover the cadet. Hunters 2, 3 and 4 will rendezvous with Heat team and ambush any enemies approaching the main unit. Once the fighting starts, all units will follow Hunter team and attempt to escape in the direction of Ajiro."

"Also, in order to prevent information leaks, data linking is prohibited during this operation. The success of this mission rests on everyone's ability to make accurate decisions. Don't forget that. I expect a hard fight from all of you."

"—copy that!" All Platoons responded to the workable plan.

"The operation will commence seven minutes from now. All units, get in position within the time limit —Walken out."

—

"—Capt. Sagiri. I am 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi of the Imperial Honour Guard 19th Independent Guard Unit. —Respond. I am 1st Lt, Tsukuyomi of the Imperial Honour Guard 19th Independent Guard Unit." Tsukuyomi's pronouncement was eventually answered by the Captain himself.

"—I am Capt. Sagiri of the Imperial Mainland Defense Army Capital Garrison Regiment. May I hear the results of Her Highness's deliberations?"

"Her Highness wishes to speak with you in person."

"I understand. How are we to meet?" It was agreed that the Shogun will converse with Captain after an hour of ceasefire.

"Two TSFs of the UN Army plus all four TSFs in my honour Guard will be escorting Her Highness in her TSF. Our desired meeting place is approximately five hundred meter East of Ono Shrine, by the plain field where the river ends. Is this acceptable?"

Meiya was even more nervous now when Tsukuyomi changed the numbers of escorts, then she quickly realized the reason and calmed herself.

" …Understood. I shall follow your plan. However… I request your Honour guard units to be the only ones guarding Her Highness." Having a total of seven TSF was too much of a risk for Capt. Sagiri.

"I understand your condition. However, I cannot accept it. Her Highness has directly asked for the two UN Eishis' presence. Her Highness does not desire any further conflict, she has expressed thanks and sympathy toward the UN and American Armies for their efforts to bring an end to this affair and decided to give honour to the two UN Eishi who accompanied her so far."

"…I retract the condition… and accept the UN Eishi's attendance." Meiya wished to believe that Capt. Sagiri didn't want to prolong this conflict as well.

"Understood. Then I shall escort her alone."

"Only one Honour Guard TSF? Does Her Highness really trust the UN Eishis that much?"

"She does. Her Highness has known them for quite a while now." That wasn't one hundred percent lie to Meiya's ears.

"I understand your proposal. I shall head there right away."

"I shall go there first with Her Highness following. You will wait for me to make contact."

"No, that is unchivalrous. I shall arrive first to meet Her Highness." Capt. Sagiri was a man of respect himself.

"I understand how you must feel. But I must ask you to let me ensure Her Highness's safety."

"…I see. Understood. I have no objections to letting you perform your duty. We will meet you with four TSFs as well, and await your transmission. Sagiri out."

While listening in on their transmission, Meiya pondered Sagiri's reason for not obeying Her Highness's order to stop fighting in the capital when her clearly trusted Tsukuyomi at this moment.

—

"—Your Highness. Capt. Sagiri and his escorts have arrived. Please move forward twenty meters, stop and only show yourself once Capt. Sagiri opens his hatch." Meiya silently obeyed.

The two Shiranuis executed their landing perfectly from a boost jump. Admiring the skills of the capital garrison which only served to worsen Meiya own mood, she cleared her head and patiently waited. Finally, the cockpits of the Type-94s opened, revealing Capt. Sagiri and his three guards.

"…Are you Sagiri?" Meiya released her own hatch and stood tall in front the four soldiers who all humbly lowered their heads.

"Yes, Ma'am. I am once again elated by the honour of receiving an audience with you. I am Captain Sagiri Naoya of the Imperial Mainland Defence Army 1st Division's 1st TSF Armoured Regiment." Meiya had already received this introduction during their first conversation.

"You may raise your head."

"Ma'am!"

"It is most unfortunate that we should have to meet in this manner." Capturing the grandeur of the one who led Meiya's country without her earlier tension, she would like to believe the years she spent training to act like the Shogun was not wasted.

"I am deeply distressed by the great pain and worry I have caused Your Highness. However… I beg of you to let me continue until all the traitors nesting in the capital are vanquished, and all the corruption drained from our government."

"…I regret forcing you all into such a position through my own incompetence." If she had a chance, Meiya also yearned to cease the dishonestly in the capital. But she was not in a position to do such a thing.

"Your Highness…"

"As you said in your broadcast, there is indeed a gap, and not a small one between the state of the Imperial Diet and Army and how I wish them to be. However, there is no doubt that those people have spent all of their strength in order to save our country, our people and our world. Because their feelings are pure, misunderstandings and conflicts are a frequent occurrence. And my inability to fully manage those conflicts is to blame for this."

"My apologies, Your Highness! But the fact that the government actions carried out in Your Highness's name differ from what you desire will not allow me to remain silent. Of course, there are no absolute when it comes to people. However, men and women who lack the will to resolve those misunderstandings are using Your Highness's words to shield themselves from responsibility."

"When conflicts arise, it is not Your Highness who should correct them, but the government and military themselves. But unfortunately, they no longer desire to perform such self-correction."

"During the fighting in the capital. The Sendai Provisional Government told me Your Highness had ordered an 'immediate and unconditional disarmament'. But looking back on it, by the time that order was given, Your Highness should no longer have been in the capital…" Capt. Sagiri's words carried truth that Meiya wasn't informed about.

"Perhaps their hopes were crushed when they learned of Your Highness's absence, and they created a false order. Thankfully, we had heard your true commands through a trustworthy source, and did not fall for their deception." Even if Meiya was unsure of the meaning behind his words, she didn't let such uncertainly show on her face.

"You gave me and my comrades in rebellion the order to cease combat… long before the false order they sent. However, for some reason, Your Highness's order was not conveyed to us… I am afraid those ones in the capital are the true traitors. There was not the slightest reason for them to leave Your Highness in pain!"

Meiya was soundless, the agony of her sister was her own suffering. Yet she couldn't do anything to change the end goal that depended on her negotiation.

"…Captain, I understand what you say. However, the way the Empire is now… remains my responsibility as the Shogun. As was allowing the American and UN Armies to intervene… hence, there is no need for you to spill blood on my behalf."

"Your Highness… I must thank you… touching upon Your Highness's noble and sublime heart is flooding me with emotions. I feel as though my heart is being cleansed."

"Still, that does not change the fact that the American and UN Armies' intervention into our internal affairs is a grave and barbaric threat to our sovereignty. Now that it has come to this, and we at long last have the opportunity to speak… Here is something I must tell Your Highness, even if it means putting aside my shame for having caused this situation."

"You may speak it." Meiya allowed Capt. Sagiri to reveal some information she had no access to. Part of her was curious as well, and if listening to the truth while not endangering the mission was possible; she would gladly lend her ears.

"This incident was plotted in order to fulfill American desires." After the initial moment of shock, Meiya's attention was focused solely by this disclosure.

Capt. Sagiri informed her of how the fighting in the capital was started by a single foot soldier who ignored his commander's order and fired upon the Honour Guards. It also wasn't the only case, many other places surrounding the Imperial Palace had the same incident.

The fact that those who opened fire were agents of the American intelligence agency added to Meiya's disbelief even further.

"The American government wants greater authority in the Far East, so they started the fighting in the capital to give the American Army an excuse for deployment. The American Army would then save her Highness from the fighting the capital and suppress the Japanese insurgency. All according the story the Americans wrote out."

"Also, this means the members of the Sendai Provisional Government who let the American Army intervene and hid Your Highness's order of surrender is the true culprits behind the fighting in the capital. And yet, I bear the sin of allowing it to happen… and understand full well that I cannot atone for it…"

The second time Meiya cried, it was for her country and the people of that country. Her feelings were torn between how she should act as the Shogun and her own beliefs.

"If you… if you feel that strongly… for the country… the people… and for myself, Koubuin Yuuhi… then why have you struck people down?!"

"…Your Highness." Meiya couldn't stand it, she couldn't stand the idea that this righteous will had caused for so much suffering to her people.

"Blood calls for more blood, and war begets yet more war. What you have done to bring about such a state of affairs… can you truly say… that it was done out of concern for the people or for myself?"

"Even if your true intention was to accurately convey my will, the Shogun's will to the people… does that grant you the right to destroy those who do not convey it, or even those who obstruct it… if you are allowed to do so, then by no means… do you have the right to blame to government for the effort it made to save the people at Mt. Tengen."

Capt. Sagiri quietly listened, maybe even reflecting upon his own actions.

"By no means do you have the right to speak of the people's will… our country. The country of Japan… lives within the people's hearts… and the Shogun is but a mirror… to reflect the Japan in their hearts, that is what I believe. If such a mirror were to reflect nothing, what sort of meaningless existence would that be?"

It was a belief that the people are what represented Japan, for that a country without its people doesn't exist.

"You understand that as well as any of us… and you still strayed from the path… however… you can still do the right thing. There still exists a path to wipe away your mistake… you must end this battle as soon as possible, and grant the people relief." Peace was still achievable even in this nation where the flames of war rose high.

"You lament where Japan is headed… have grasped that feeling, that will of yours. From now on, I shall give all I have for the sake of Japan, and its people, forever remembering the warnings of this incident. I swear that to you… on the name Koubuin Yuuhi." It was the only thing Meiya could do. For that, she also wished only the best for the people.

"Your Highness… I must apologize again, for that I had one last piece of information to share."

"You may speak it." It was unexpected, to say the least; for Capt. Sagiri to divert the topic at this point, but Meiya saw no reason to stop him.

"We were actually told by an undisclosed informant about the movements of the all of the armies. They notified us of your movements from the moment you escaped the capital, your heading and the units that you travelled with. It was someone that knew every movement of this battle, and leaked them to us."

"For what reason has you brought this up again? I understand that there are those who hope to reap the benefit from the blood of this country's people. That is why you must stop this conflict from spreading any further!"

At that time, no one; not a single person on site noticed the Eishis outermost in the back of Capt. Sagiri's side had retracted into their TSF.

"We are also told that… Your Highness is an imposter. And the real Shogun has already escaped this area. But after conversing with Your Highness, I can conclude that our informant was only attempting to manipulate the situation to their own advantage."

While Sagiri was blind to Meiya's thoughts, herself was utterly stunned by this. Someone knew of her false identity and had spread the words to Capt. Sagiri directly.

"Your Highness… I leave my comrade's fates… In your capable hands." The bombshell was so severe that Meiya didn't recover in time to answer Sagiri's request. Her lack of response also sealed the future events in stone.

 **Encrypted channel**

"—Moses to all operatives. The situation has changed, all operatives are to execute phase nine with caution. Assistance from Trojan 2 will not available. The quality of the HVT no longer matters, complete the objective under any circumstances."

"—Envy actual, copy that."

"—Crash actual, roger."

"—Sphinx actual, understood."

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

"Your Highness? Is someth—" It took literally one second for the Type-94 that escorted Sagiri to lock onto Meiya's TSF and fire its deadly rounds with no delay.

"Wha—?!" Given no time to react, neither side prepared any feedback.

The metal slugs flew through the air, heading for Meiya's open cockpit. From where she stood, the bullets didn't appear to be advancing at all, instead it was only increasing in size.

If events were allowed to occur naturally, Meiya's body wouldn't be identifiable by the time the rounds impacted. Luckily, things never turn out normally for this special team of cadets.

"—Your Highness, please retreat! It's dangerous here!" The voice of the almost-never-serious Sumika reached Meiya as her Type-94 reflected the rounds with a PB-blade. Something that would typically never occur. For a sword to slash down metal as it crosses the air was only seen in old comic books before by Meiya.

"—Your Highness! Enter your TSF!"

"—YOU FOOL! Kuro 3, why did you fire?!" Hearing Capt. Sagiri's shout wasn't enough to stop the rouge Eishis from both sides.

"Why…! Why?!" Meiya shouted her thoughts, still exposed outside her Takemikazuchi.

"Your Highness! Please watch yourse—" Before Capt. Sagiri could start his unit, His TSF was knocked down by another of his escorts; throwing him off down to the ground.

The Captain's last wingman that came along to stop the rogue Eishi, only to be blown to pieces by shots from 173th Battalion's Sniper.

"—Heat 7! Cease fire, you are going to hit the cadet! Heat 7!" Commands from Maj. Walken fell on deaf ears.

As one of the most experienced soldier on field, Tsukuyomi rushed her surface fighter to cover for Meiya. Who still stood outside, unable to accept the breakdown of their consultation.

"—STOP! Stop this!" Meiya's screams were answered by long range marksman fire that rained down from the mountains to their sides. Tsukuyomi shield Meiya with her own TSF, taking multiple shots from all directions.

"Arg— Your Highness! Please get away!" The red Takemikazuchi lost its left main arm and half of its sub-arms in seconds.

This engagement was one of the worst Tsukuyomi had ever met in her life. Lacking a shield of any form and unable to evade the pouring metal from all sides without putting an unprepared Meiya in danger.

Nonetheless, such difficulties were never of concern for Tsukuyomi. With her remaining hand, she took her sword and deflected only the closest shots to Meiya's frame.

But no matter how skilled Tsukuyomi was as an Eishi. The American marksmen's accuracy was not something to be taken lightly, she had already parried over a dozen shells. The Type-00 of the Imperial Guard was starting to lose manoeuvrability from accumulated injuries.

"All units! We're moving to Phase 2 of the plan! You are cleared to engage all hostiles! Weapons free!"

"—On your left, Archer 1. Two incoming." From where Meiya's sight couldn't see, combat broke out all around her from where her hands couldn't reach .

"Urga! Good call, Stinger 1! Here they come, Kasumi-chan!"

Seeing the instant turn of the tide, all TSFs; Insurgents, Americans, UNs and Royal Guards all jumped into the fray with their own goal in mind. However, out of that chaos only one side would come out victorious.

"Damn it! They're too much! They're all rushing us!"

"Dodge down, I'll shoot." Following Kasumi's instruction on instinct, Sumika evaded backwards and gave Kasumi a spilt second of opportunity to fire all her weapons. The accuracy of her rounds was pitch perfect as three charging Shiranuis ate the shots head on and were no longer combat effective.

"Stinger 1, Archer 1! Clear the perimeter of all enemies! I'll cover Her Highness from their snipers!" It was unsure to anyone if Tsukuyomi's call at that time was a wise one, but as of this moment, nobody had the luxury to question her command.

"Copy! Let's go, Stinger 1!"

"Okay." With that, two Second Lieutenants flew off and joined the other forces on the frontline.

 **Ayamine Kei**

"—this is Archer 2, moving to support!"

"—what!? Archer 2! Where are you heading!?" While disregarding order was something Kei had a habit of doing, it wasn't expected for her to foolishly rush in at her enemies.

"—Instructor! What should we do?!" Behind her, Chizuru shouted at their instructor for an order.

"Agaa! The rest of Archer team will provide supporting fire from behind! Stinger 4, come with me!" Jinguuji wasn't any less confused than the rest of her team, or the American team, for that matter. Nevertheless, fighting is what people are required to do on a battlefield.

"—Ma'am!"

—

Scrambling forward in first place was Kei and her Fubuki, ducking and dodging through skirmishes between the two forces at war.

For what reason was she fighting so hard, Kei wasn't sure herself. It was probably mostly just a feeling in her heart, when it all comes down to it. After her squad leader comforted her pain and guided her onto a new path, Kei's heart started to furnish with a sentiment she wasn't accustomed to. But there was one point she was very sure of, and that was the subject of her inner feelings.

She didn't know exactly how to put those feelings into words, it was difficult, really. And what Mitsurugi said back during the last minutes of the ceasefire only clouded her judgment even further. So Kei came to a final conclusion, albeit a stupid one. She decided she was jealous.

Was Kei really envious of the words spoken by Mitsurugi about her feelings? Maybe not; but as of now she wished for a motivation to fight for him, and this excuse of hers will do just fine.

"—Archer 2! Don't charge blindly without any order!" Chasing her rear was none other than her least favourite teammate and their instructor.

"—what're you doing, Ayamine!?" Opening fire on the insurgent frames as well, Chizuru caught up with Kei without drawing too many shots their way.

"…I have to do this." The rubbish answer she gave to her team was just like the answer that made no sense to herself.

"Don't be ridiculous, Cadet Ayamine! Work with your squad and complete the mission together!" Destroying another Third-gen Shiranui using her first gen, Jinguuji also closed the distance between her and the Fubuki.

"…I'm sorry."

"We'll discuss your punishment later, cadet. Since we're here now, we'll assist the bait team in their escape!"

"Ma'am!" Kei silently thanked her forgiving instructor and brought her focus back in the fight at hand.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

"Ahaaa… why…?" Still not in the right set of mind, Meiya stood obtusely outside her fighter as all the bloodshed spread like a wild fire around her.

She wasn't mentally ready for this sort of situation. Everything ended so fast, too fast for her. It didn't feel like long in real time, only a minute had passed since the beginning of absolute mayhem. So to Meiya, it felt as if everything was thrown into anarchy in a fraction of a second.

"—Your Highness! Hurry and get goin—" The sentence of her most loyal retainer never got to change to finish when a particular 120mm shell found its way past all of the obstacles and Tsukuyomi's defence.

The bullet struck the scarlet TSF right in its lower back, below the cockpit. If the shot was made with a 120mm APCBCHE, a high explosive round, Tsukuyomi's carbon armour plate would still be resilient enough for her to barely shrug off the damage.

However, a kinetic penetrating SABOT shell was what had smashed Tsukuyomi's rear. An arrow like metal dart shredded the joint between the lower back and the legs, causing a sizable bright explosion below the waist of her Type-00. And finally, as the laws of physics dictated, the Takemikazuchi fell down from its two dislodged legs.

"…T-Tsukuyomi…?" A loud thud accompanied some dust as it gusted all around Tsukuyomi's collapsed surface fighter. Meiya felt a rush of helplessness which in turn, brought her sense back to this reality.

"TSUKUYOMI!" Giving Meiya only some brief seconds to react. Shiranui that used to belong to Capt. Sagiri's team emerged from nowhere and raised its sword, aiming for Meiya's unit.

To her rescue was Ayamine, of all people. She who reacted fast enough was somehow able to deflect the fatal attack with her own blade.

"—MANA-sama!" The three Royal Guard Eishis called the name of their commander in unison. Their attempt to reach her was cut off by additional incoming rebels.

"—Mitsurugi! Hurry up and start your unit! We can't go anywhere without you!" The 207th squadron's instructor yelled out her command from behind.

"—but Tsukuyomi…! She is still—!"

"We need to get you out of here right away, Mitsurugi!" Left with no alternative other to obey her instructor's words, Meiya clumsily entered her own Type-00 and started the engine.

 **Ayamine Kei**

She saw them before anyone else did, so naturally she reacted before anyone else too. There were four Shiranuis charging her squad, each with their weapon hot and ready to dish out some death.

"—four incoming! Five O'clock!"

"—all units, scatter! Mitsurugi, hurry up and get out of here now! Stinger 4 and Archer 2, execute a pincer movement!"

"Copy that!"

—

It could have went better, because it certainly couldn't have been any worse. The only redemption for their failure was that they lasted long enough for Mitsurugi to miss their defeat, or she would certainly have turned back to their aid.

The fight was an uneven one from the beginning, four veteran Type-94 Eishis against two cadets in Fubukis and their experienced instructor in a first gen Gekishin. Their only hope was for the XM3 to even the odds. Unfortunately, their enemies were clearly aware of such an OS that boosted their movements.

Back to the current time, Chizuru's unit was disabled with a clean shot that took out her sensors. Instructor Jinguuji was busy engaging three Shiranuis in her damaged unit alone which left Kei alone to fend for her own life.

"Damn it this guy…!" Obviously, Kei's shot just didn't connect no matter how much she tried to improve her aim.

The hostile Shiranui dodged with precise boosts while closing the distance fast, its sword drawn and ready to see blood. On the other hand, Kei just emptied both magazines in her rifle and was forced to answer the incoming enemy with the blade equipped on her back as well.

There was no time for Kei to think. She had to act, or die. The Shiranui gunning for her didn't slow down its pace when it took a stance with its sword raised sideways across its chest. They would collide in another four seconds, she knew; everything, her dreams, her future, her life all depended on her performance in the following second.

—

Maybe the other Eishi got overly confident, maybe Kei was much more skillful than she would credit herself, or maybe it was pure luck that she somehow dodged under the swing of the Shiranui and gave it one strike back in return.

The remains of a Type-94 blazed in her Fubuki's shadow. The adrenaline was still being pumped in its entirely through Kei's veins, increasing her blood flow and speeding up her breathing.

Even if she did end another's life, it felt good. It felt amazing to come out on top and beat the opponent who was clearly more trained than she was. Now all there was left to do is just finishing the fight, Kei could do anything, nothing can stop her—

"—AYAMINE! BEHIND YOU!" And when she turned around, Kei was already on the ground. A classic supplemental Armour bash right to her front.

It was such an old cliché, that Kei couldn't believe she allowed it to happen to her. As demonstrated by the Eishi she took out just seconds ago, overconfidence leads to one's doom. Maybe if she actually thought about how dangerous it was to underestimate her opponents it wouldn't happen next time. But then again, there wouldn't be a next time.

Once her screen came back, all she could see was a single Shiranui standing above her with its sword raised high. With only seconds to spare, Kei frantically motioned her control stick in an attempt to reactivate her frame. It was useless, of course; her left arm wasn't attached anymore and her right one was pinned under the feet of the Type-94 above her.

A more skilled Eishi would tried to see if the Mount Pylons were still functional to bring up the extra rifles, obviously Kei was no such Eishi. Off to the sides, a helping hand from Instructor Jinguuji was nowhere in sight.

"No…! I…! NO!" Kei was sacred, possibly actually scared for the first time in her life.

Logical, too; since she was about to lose that very life in the next few seconds. She panicked, she lost every single part of her composure. Her mind froze and her thoughts just stopped, even unconsciously crying her eyes out, something she hadn't done since a small child.

"I… DON'T WANT TO DIE!" In the end, her plea was answered; one way or another.

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

Kasumi adjusted her guns instantly and pinned down one of the Type-94s in a Flight of four, only to leave the second one unchecked. The Type-94 in question bolted past Sumika, who was engaging a US model, the F-15E Strike Eagle of the 173th Battalion, to be exact.

"—they slipped me, Sumika-san!"

"—Argha…! I can't! Meiya-san, be careful!"

Drawing its PB-blade that was attached to the TSF's back, the second Shiranui that found itself right in front of a purple Takemikazuchi raised its sword that was about to be used not for the protection of the country, instead as an attempt to end the supposed Shogun's life.

Yashiro and Sumika were good Eishis, just not as good as their Takeru. So when Tsukuyomi fell, they couldn't make it back in time to defend everyone. They got cut off from Kei and the rest of the Stinger team, the only recovery they made was Meiya. Who was just about to be offed in a few moments.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

In her head, Meiya could think of about seventeen hundred things she could have improved on. The rounds from her weapon was casually dodged by the Type-94, it spun around Meiya's aim and shortened the distance until it came face to came with the Shogun's TSF.

There were many reasons for Meiya's underperformance; one of which was that against contrary belief, she actually saw the last engagement of her teammates and heard something.

While she didn't want to believe it, her rational side was assuming for it to be Ayamine's scream. And once her mind registered what had happened, her body no longer worked as she wished to. The guilt of failing Takeru's order overcame her senses and she just gave up.

So for obvious reasons, Meiya was too dumbfounded to remember the training taught to her by her Takeru.

"—MEIYA-SAN! WATCH OUT!" Sumika's yell was of no assistance to Meiya who didn't even have the strength to grip her control sticks tightly.

Meiya wasn't afraid of death, she only wished for her life to be used to the benefit of her nation and her friends. But that time was different. Her death here wouldn't help to end this conflict.

It would only escalate this war that already burned the lives of so many of her countrymen. However, instead of letting her final moment be spent mourning for Japan. What Meiya felt was only regret, regret that she couldn't keep a single promise.

A single promise that the man of her affection asked for her. There was nothing left, for a failure the likes of her.

"Takeru…" Yet she still called. The name of her lover was the only thing she found herself muttering before her fated demise. For a moment, she completely forgot her duty as the Shogun's shadow, her role as the night sky that was invented to befall the capital.

"Please…" A mere instant, as if the entire world's time had just slowed down for her sake alone. She dedicated her final flash to the man that placed her own life above his. Meiya didn't doubt the vow he took before her, but no man could protect something that they didn't know was in danger.

"Save me…" And yet, she still called out, she searched for a reply that wouldn't exist.

And found it.

The sparks of clashing metal brightened the screen in front of Meiya. The blade that was certain to put an end to her life was stopped by another edge. A sword that should not be present, but its wielder was not a man that allowed himself to be tied down by any logic.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"CHASER!"

Half a second, that was how much time I had left. If I was half a second slower, Meiya's corpse would be the only thing I was shouting to. The Shiranui I blocked pulled its sword back for a second strike, but such a slow machine was no match for my hijacked YF-23.

I cleaved that double-dealing Shiranui with two clean cuts down its mid-section, exploding the remains of my victim as I leaped away to destroy any insurgents not willing to back down.

"—impossible…! That Raptor did not appear on radar until it was a hundred meters out… how can it move like this?!" Somewhere in the communication mess, 2nd Lt. Irma remarked to no one.

"—unidentified TSF! Activate your IFF immediately! Announce your Battalion and unit!" Maj. Walken demanded my origin. I switched on my identification device to show him that I meant no harm.

"—this is 1st Lt. Shirogane of the 207th Battalion. I have returned by the order of Her Highness. This unit was given to me by the 54th Battalion as my Shiranui got destroyed by the rebels." What I reported technically wasn't a lie. I could hear chatters of all sorts over the comms.

"—Takeru! You came back!"

"—awaaa… it really is Takeru-san!" The flat chested combo was happy for my return.

"—Takeru-chan! A-A-Ayamine-san! You have to help her!"

"—and Chizuru-san too. We can't reach them." For clear reasons, Sumika and Kasumi were worried for their downed team members.

"You hear that, Ayamine? Want me to come back? Maybe you can cry in my care this time." And in a wonderfully Ayamine-like fashion, she covered her camera with one finger, the middle one, undeniably.

"—you really are like a hero, huh, squad leader?" The second ass I saved was Class rep's. I had no idea how she could be this exhausted when all she did was getting taken out.

"—that black TSF was you, 1st Lt. Shirogane?" Marimo-chan asked me very professionally after I made my appearance clear.

"Sure was, you're welcome. By the way."

"Thank you very much for your assistance, First Lieutenant. I am afraid I was done for without your aid." True that, Marimo-chan was swarmed by three Shiranuis. Impressive enough already for her to hold out that long.

"—Takeru… you really came."

"I never break my promises, Meiya." I briefly greeted Meiya, whose emotions were too much of a jumble for me to perceive accurately.

The rest of my team also shouted and cried into the comms, making a big mess out of everything.

"Hunter team! Rendezvous with Stinger 3 and 1901, destroy any enemies you encounter! We are moving to Phase 3!" Maj. Walken ordered for the continuation of the plan.

"—all Platoons! Cease fire and fall back! Do not open fire on Her Highness! Eliminate any traitors among us!" Finally an attempt by Capt. Sagiri to salvage the hectic condition, unsuccessfully; due to the battle being too chaotic.

The insurgent forces had Shiranuis firing toward us and the Americans in the dozen. Some were agents from the CIA. Others were just disordered by the conflict. Bunch of the American forces were also taking pot-shots at us, trying to hide it as misfire.

Two more Shiranui appeared to challenge my title. The first one put its shots down range while the other rushed across the battlefield in an attempt put the sword to better use.

I maneuvered my frame with precision, not permitting a single bullet to come in contact. The blade I held in my hand was outstretched with great speed to deflect the enemy's slash. I bounced its sword away and used that opening to cut down its limbs and body.

The second Type-94 raced toward me with the sword drawn as well. Its strike was interrupted by a hall of rounds that left my barrel. I closed the distance when the enemy dodged my shots only to have its arms and legs hacked apart from the cockpit.

"—both sides. Stop the meaningless battle this instant!" It was this moment when a new tone introduced itself to our war.

The voice that called out for peace carried a determination so strong, it felt as if anyone that disobeyed would be punished by the heaven itself. Against all odds, all TSFs on the field ceased their movement and focused on the single YF-23 where the order stemmed from.

"I will not allow another drop of blood to be wasted for this conflict that will bring about no result! As the Grand Shogun of this country! I demand all forces to lower their arms!"

"What…! Your Highness! Why have you returned?!" The first one to show her concern and anguish for the Shogun's presence was none other than the one who pretended to be the Shogun until now.

"1st Lt. Shirogane! Why did you bring back Her Highness?!"

"It is by my order, Maj. Walken. For I have a reason to turn back to this battlefield. Please check up on Tsukuyomi's condition, Shirogane." Yuuhi shut down Maj. Walken's disapproval before worrying for her servant that was injured in battle.

"Of course." I rode my surface fighter right beside where the fallen Honour Guard plummeted. A quick check of her vitals showed some minor internal bleeding and concussion. While unconscious right now, Tsukuyomi's life was not in danger.

"1st Lt. Tsukuyomi is unconscious, but she's fine. Her life isn't threatened." Hearing my announcement as a sign, the three idiots rushed to our location in seconds. As they found the current situation suitable enough to disobey the Major's order.

"Kamiyo, Tomoe, Ebisu. I will leave Tsukuyomi in your hands. Take good care of her."

"—yes, ma'am!" Surrounding the red Type-00. One of the three idiots disembarked their unit and went to care for Tsukuyomi.

"As I said before, I have returned due to my own will. Can you hear me, Sagiri?"

"Your Highness…?" Sagiri couldn't comprehend at first the idea of another Shogun. But the previous suggestion of there being an imposer cleared his train of thoughts.

"Sagiri. I returned because there is unfinished business that must be attended to. But first, the one that you were speaking with earlier is my other half. Her words carry the same weight as my own." Yuuhi addressed Capt. Sagiri next, who was confused by the situation at hand.

" Your Highness… please watch yourself! There are traitors amongst my ranks!"

"I know. And to all those who holds a different purpose here right now, if you are confident with your chances, do not hesitate and challenge me directly. I will be here waiting for your show of bravely." Yuuhi declared her intention to face all defiance head on.

The CIA agents weren't foolish enough to blow their own cover. But what Yuuhi did effectively put an end to the last skirmishes left.

 _Sumika, patch me through to their channel. The new, abnormal one._

" _Huh…? Ahaa… wait, okay. I got it!_ " A different signal connected to my comms. I could hear panicking shouts of all kind in English.

"—damn it, Moses! This is Sphinx actual. We can't make any moves here! Requesting update!"

"—Moses to all operatives. Hold your current position until further notice. Operation Roswell in no longer in effect. All operative are on standby, await for further command." The CIA was cancelling their planned procedure when Yuuhi and I unpredictably interfered.

—

"This is it then? If anyone else wants to get it a go. I'll be here all week!" I kicked away the wreckage of a Shiranui's arms as the rest of its body laid on the ground, unmoving. Both sides couldn't do anything to stop the massacre that occurred under a minute.

"Captain Sagiri. Present yourself before me. Let us finish the discussion my other half had started."

"Your Highness! It is too dangerous! We do not know who else holds ill-will against you! It is too risky for you to show yourself!" The concern for Yuuhi's safety was shared by everyone that didn't turn their back on their causes.

"It will be fine. Shirogane, do not let any further combat transpire."

"I understand. —207th Platoon, Circle 1 around Her Highness. Keep your sights open for any hostiles." Sumika and Kasumi piloted their frames to our sides soon before the rest did the same. With Yuuhi's trust in the proficiency of my team, letting her down was not an option.

"All units, exit this area immediately. Anyone that remains will be branded as a defector to our nation." Capt. Sagiri ordered for all of his men to retreat. A wise decision considering our position.

"Maj. Walken. I ask for all American soldiers to withdraw as well." Seeing that all but Sagiri himself left the area. Yuuhi asked the Americans to do the same.

"But Your Highness. Their forces coul—"

"Major. The only force left that could do me harm would be from your army. I am very gratified to all American Eishis who fought in this battle for my protection. However, our current situation does not allow me to lower my guard. Please, exit your men before anymore accidents happen. You alone can stay, for I trust your sense of duty."

Yuuhi's stringent order didn't give the major any room for compensation.

"…I understand. Hunter 1 to all Platoons. Retreat right away, clear a five kilometer radius from this location."

"Heat Leader, copy that." Both American Battalions pulled back without questions.

"Shirogane, open the cockpit. Tell the escorts to back away." Sagiri was already outside his Type-94, waiting for Yuuhi to grant him reception.

"Of course." I freed the portal from the locks applied to it. Yuuhi stood under the night sky, her look illustrated her resolve. The units in front of our formation spread out and formed a line behind my TSF that was the platform for our Shogun.

"Your Highness. I have no excuse for my oversight. I allowed those whose objectives were to harm our nation within my ranks." Sagiri was facing a dozen TSFs by himself, but he didn't show any sign of discomfort,

"There is no need for you to apologize for what you could not control. Rise your head." Sagiri did as instructed and aligned his view with Yuuhi.

"Still, I cannot forgive myself for suc—"

"That is enough. Those that wish to sabotage our country have being amongst us for much longer than we could distinguish. On this matter, Maj. Walken, are you familiar with the schemes planned by the intelligence agency of your home nation?"

"…Unfortunately, I am not aware of such plans…" Maj. Walken had a hard time acknowledging the acts of espionage that Yuuhi was prosecuting America for.

"The faults of one's country do not fall upon its people. However, I have no intention of tolerating what your government has sought to implement in my country."

"Your Highness, I demand evidence of my nation's involvements in this affair. I have sworn my loyalty to the United States of America and I cannot accept your accusation without proof."

"Maj. Walken! How dare you order the Shogun of our—"

"Do not speak, Tomoe. This is one of my purposes in returning here. Shirogane, apply what you must." Yuuhi wasn't taking crap from anyone right now.

"—alright, Specter 1 to all units, activating electronic countermeasures. Archer 1, reinforce me with a pulse three. Don't let any radio signal escape the perimeter."

The second-generation of active stealth and hacking capability of this modified Black Widow— or Arondight, whatever; was much more effective than its regular counterpart. Sumika also backed me up with whatnot her mental superpower was.

"We're secure, Specter 1. Nothing will get through here for ten minutes."

"Please send the major our discovery, Shirogane." By Yuuhi's instruction, I distributed the list of CIA operatives to Maj. Walken's TSF.

"What… impossible…! For the CIA to have…!" After reading the leaked intel, Maj. Walken had no comeback to speak of.

"Major, can you understand the source of my allegation now? I believe that your loyalty to your nation does not extend out to the conspiracies it designed." Maj. Walken replied nothing into the radio.

"I plan to expose their actions that endangered the people for their own benefits. I will not stand for Japan to be taken lightly. However, this blame will be placed appropriately only to those who deserve condemnation." My victory was certain if Yuuhi brings to light what the CIA undertook.

"…I understand, Your Highness…"

"Thank you, Major. I have not forgotten what your men did for my safety. Like I said, the soldier of the country cannot be held responsible for its crimes." Yuuhi was decisive to not let Japan be pushed around by the leading nation. The Major still kept his mouth shut and positioned his TSF exactly where it was before.

"Sagiri. Let us bring the topic back on track. Remind me again of your objective."

"Yes, ma'am! I wished for Your Highness' permission to annihilate those that refuge within the capital until the corruption of our government is removed." Sagiri told Yuuhi the same reply that was given to Meiya.

"How will you remove them? Will you end the lives of all those that opposes my ideals?" Even without words, I noticed the squad was uneasy about the direction of this exchange.

"…Yes, that is my plan."

"I see. I have perceived what you had discussed with the one who represented me. Your aim to put an end to the corruption of the government and convey my will to the people is just. However, the method that you chose brought about this raging war and only more suffering to the people. I cannot permit the blood of the people to be spilled for that purpose."

There was nothing for Sagiri to defend himself with. Yuuhi's accusations were the same as Meiya's claims.

"During my time away from our capital. I have learned something that swayed my own opinion. Japan, as a nation, stands in the way of our true enemy's advance."

"As the Shogun, it is my responsibility to protect this nation from the invaders that threatens not only the people of this country, but mankind itself." A short pause from Yuuhi, but she had already decided on the future.

"Like you said, the current Imperial Diet and the Army are much different than what I wish them to be. I do not suspect their will to save this country, the people and this world. That is the justification for why I have left them be; for I trusted their effort is also for the prosperity Japan."

"However, I no longer have the time to waver. I still am not certain if all of Sendai only wishes to benefit themselves, but this country can no longer afford to wait for their result."

"Your Highness… you don't mean…" Sagiri was stunned. He wasn't prepared for what Yuuhi had in her mind.

"I, Koubuin Yuuhi, the Grand Shogun of the Empire of Japan. Announce my intention to dissolve the legislature of the Imperial Diet. With our current turmoil, an election with new political parties would most likely be in place. I plan to personally give my support to a newly formed party that will be selected by myself."

The bombshell that was dropped cannot be compared to any other. Not a word was said for two minutes straight, many were still doubting their eyes while others only stared in amazement.

"Your Highness! You— you can't just dissolve—" The first voice to be heard after two minutes showed disapproval to Yuuhi's choice.

"Meiya. Do you disagree with my decision?" I laughed silently at this great performance. Meiya's name was addressed, directly by the Shogun of Japan.

"Ane— Your Highness! Dissolving the government cannot be official without the Emperor's consent!"

"I will go to him personally once this incident has settled down. He will not oppose my decision." The power of the Shogun had not been wielded like this in decades.

"Still, Your Highness! To disband the Imperial Diet so simply. May I ask for at least a purpose?!" Meiya just wouldn't let this slide by.

"I have being too… relaxing… as the Shogun. I was unaware of the cries from the people. I ignored those that reached out for help. Such was how I have allowed all this war to happen without any effort to stop it. If the Shogun of this country could not stop its people from fighting, then how weak must that country be." Yuuhi held so much power, but she didn't bother to use them to their full extent.

"Your Highness, I cannot properly express my appreciation for your understanding!" Sagiri bowed his head toward Yuuhi again.

"Sagiri, you are a soldier that serves this country. However, soldiers are not educated in the stage of politics. I give you my word that I will never again push aside my duty to protect the people of Japan. So I ask you to accept the appropriate judgment for your actions."

"Of course, Your Highness. If Your Highness' hand can guide this nation to a prosperous future for the people, then the price of my life is nothing in comparison."

Sagiri's beliefs aided him so that he will leave no regret behind. If his wish was to be granted an honourable death before hearing Yuuhi's revelation, that should have changed significantly without a doubt.

"I believe your talent and skills will one day assist this country. Until the time when you have atoned for your crimes is here, your death will only be another life that is not fighting against our true enemy. But we shall discuss this at another time."

Sagiri was incapable of doing anything else other than keep his head low in front of Yuuhi's generosity.

"Then let us end this battle, for the lives that were lost are already too many."

—

 **Shirogane Specter 1**

 **Sumika Archer 1**

 **Ayamine Archer 2**

 **Mikoto Archer 3**

 **Tamase Archer 4**

 **Kasumi Stinger 1**

 **Marimo Stinger 2**

 **Meiya Stinger 3**

 **Sakaki Stinger 4**

—

 **Author's note**

What? I'm one day late? Yeah, I know. Things happen, okay? Be happy I'm not delaying my updates without explaining.

In all seriousness, thank you again for reading my newest chapter. I'll be more casual with everyone reading this fic from now on since I consider you all my internet buddies. At first I'm respectful and stuff because we don't know each other that well, but now you read this many chapters already, it's like our relationship developed. We good buddies, yes?

In other news, at the time of this post, November 1, 2015. The Muv-Luv Kickstarter just reached their 900.000 dollar strenchgoal! I don't know about you guys but I'm pretty excited to get my copy when they release it.

(Along with all the other stuff which I can buy elsewhere for a much cheaper price, it's the spirit that counts. Guess the exclusive are different, but details, details.) If you're uninformed about this, go search the kickstarter site for Muv-Luv or Google it, details are all there. The kickstarter ends on November 3, 2015 at 11 AM so just know that if you're interested.

After the beggary and free advertisement, this over length AN will end here. Again, favourite and follow if you so wish. PM me for any questions or just leave a review for it, all the normal stuff people write in the Author's note can be found here.

Thanks again and see you all next time.

This is a shout out to my BETA guy, chad001.

(See what I did there? Huh? BETA, right? Get it!? …what? The door is that way? …Okay, thanks.)


	16. End of an era

**A***** F*******

 **D******* 0* 2*****

 **CIA headquarters. Langley, United States of America.**

"No, sir, that's a no go. The current condition isn't favourable. The higher ups are calling off this operation."

Within a dark office, sat a single man in his forties. A nice suit, pale looks and anger management helped hide his fury behind a professional mask, the man was on the phone with another equally upset individual who couldn't accept their failure.

"We can't have that. Too much of our agents are at risk if we discontinue this mission." The man in his office was the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He was in the process of reviewing their newest update with his secretary.

"But there's no way for us to contain the leak. Our infiltration of the Yokohama database was compromised. They hid fake intel behind layers of firewall as a trick for our hackers." With a secure line as their platform of communication, both men revealed some highly classified information about their plot.

"We lost contact with the special clearance team that was tasked with outing the HVT, and the current state of our prototype is still unclear."

"Those damn Japs… whatever IV did with their data is out of our hands. But if the media gets tipped off about our involvement in this affair. Congress will demand responsibility to be taken." And that will likely devastate the agency beyond repair.

"What do you suggest, director?" Desperate times calls for desperate measures. The director of the CIA had only one card left to play.

"…We'll clean them up, hard measure, no other way."

"Sir… I am not sure if such means are truly necessary." Even for the CIA, such actions were still normally too unethical for them to implement.

"There is no choice here, son. We have to do what we have to do to ensure V's success. Those IV supporters and their pipe dreams will not save us. This is all for our beautiful planet, if we are to be serious about bring peace. Sacrifices must be made."

The contradicting philosophy was so awful that no sane person would think of it as anything other than pure madness. But no man in this world could be one hundred percent certain of their own sanity anymore.

"…I understand, I'll be making the arrangements immediately."

"Thank you, Alex. We'll see through this gruelling time. Contact the stations, as of December 06, 2001 at 0547 hours. Operation Dustfall is a go. May god guide us in our path to freedom."

Within those twisted words, the existence of their own truth could not be denied. After all, it made the most sense to prioritize one's own merit before others. Be it for a single person, a squadron of soldiers, or a nation of earth for that matter.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **06:30 AM**

 **Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture**

To whoever said that silence is golden, I would like to have my money right now. Or else I'll see this guy in court for his bullshit.

After Yuuhi demonstrated her dominance as the Shogun to all parties involved in the earlier faceoff, no one that dared to disagree with her decisions spoke up so I repositioned our formation when Yuuhi ordered for our return.

As of now, the team leading the way was actually the subordinates of Sagiri. Their weapon system was manually disabled and their weapons confiscated. The two insurgent Battalions were also walking two kilometres ahead with the rest going another direction to avoid a cluster of former rebels, just in case they change their minds half way through.

Behind them were my unit and the 19th Independent Royal Guards. The eight UN Eishis surrounded me within Circle 1, each of them cleared the comms and chose to maintain our quietness. While Class rep and Ayamine's units got beaten up rather bad, it wasn't severe enough to take them out of the battle.

As for the three idiots, they borrowed one of the IJA's spare armoured vehicles and transported the still unconscious Tsukuyomi with that. Her Takemikazuchi had to be left behind as we saw no method of carrying a damaged surface fighter. Finally, the Americans were behind us with a distance of five klicks, the gap between our two armies was insurance to avert a repeat of our previous 'accident'.

"So… anyone wants to play shiritori (Japanese word game) or something?" That was my best conversation starter for this terribly weird atmosphere.

 **07:32 AM**

"Kasumi, give me a sitrep."

"Current time is 0732 hours. Negative on hostile activity within ten klicks." She shortened the report when there was nothing to be reported.

Our train just reached Shirahama coast, from here on out it should be only a forty minutes until we meet up with the Yokosuka fleet. The earlier pastime of shiritori took off with only half of our current population, I couldn't force those who were in their own world to play our games.

Yuuhi would charm and listen to the day-to-day conversation I held with team bunnies and team shorties. Marimo-chan and Class rep were too serious to join in our pastime and Ayamine just wouldn't say a word to anyone. Finally, Meiya kept herself occupied by sheer mental power as our icebreakers were mercilessly ignored.

—

"How is Meiya's condition?"

"Well, she's still alive, right?"

"Please do not make a joke about this subject, Shirogane." Ouch, Yuuhi just wasn't taking anyone's shit now.

"Sorry, Yuuhi-sama. Meiya is most likely depressed over her earlier performance. Now that the shock wore off and she had plenty of time to reconsider her acts. She probably is feeling quite disheartened by what happened before."

I checked on Meiya once more, her camera showed an awfully disturbed girl whose gaze wafted all over with nothing to focus on.

"If she is ever in need of aid, please be to her assistance." Yuuhi seemingly didn't mean for the immediate future in her request.

"I'll do my best, Meiya is an important teammate."

"Tell me, Shirogane. What is your exact relationship with Meiya?" Why this question of all things? The peer Yuuhi shot me made it extremely hard to dodge this unfavourable inquiry.

"How about I say she's my partner?"

"Eh…? T-that's… ah…" Aww, so cute, Yuuhi got embarrassed in a matter of seconds. She flushed a slight red and turned her head to avoid it showing.

"Hehe, are you—" A sudden radio noise once again, cut me off from further teasing.

"—this is Yokohama Base headquarters to the 207th Armoured Platoon leader. Specter 1, we have an emergency situation. Encrypted channel will be in effect." Everyone and everything had a habit of interrupting me today. But this one was special.

"Sorry, Yuuhi-sama. But I will have to disconnect your earpiece."

"That is alright. I understand your requirement for privacy." Cutting Yuuhi's receiver off with her permission, I entered the encrypted channel for my briefing.

"—Specter 1 copy, go ahead headquarters." It was 1st Lt. Piatif who was on the line with me. Her attitude left no doubt about the severity of her report.

"A recent update from our 3rd HSST Fleet has informed us of three unidentified HSSTs currently on its final re-entry sequence. The three HSSTs have been marked as a hostile attack of unknown nature by the Yokohama high command. The visual representation will be transmitted shortly." And not a second later, the new images were dispatched to my screen.

"The attack occurred seventy five minutes ago. As of 0730 hours, we have confirmed the trajectory of the first two re-entry destroyers. The first HSST, titled decoy 1, is currently bearing 23 degrees south of east. The second HSST, titled decoy 2, is currently bearing 35 degrees south of west."

"The projected final impaction location of both HSSTs will be on Sadogashima Island, thus we have concluded both decoys are only a distraction for the BETA Laser-class." I had already predicted the rest of her debrief and was only keeping an eye out for unexpected turns.

"The last HSST, titled Bogey 1. Is currently bearing 13 degrees north of west. The HSST is set on a collision course with Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture." For the uninformed, that was right on top of our heads.

"All of our attempts at hacking or changing its trajectory have ended in failure. We have no method of stopping Bogey 1 from descending into the atmosphere."

"Can we not reverse our heading and just exit the blast zone?" While I knew the answer, any other person would have asked this question.

"Negative, the content of its cargo is unclear. However, we have reasons to believe that Bogey 1 is carrying a high density of Semtex. Its exact weight is unknown, but it should be safe to assume for there to be over a thousand ton of explosive aboard."

"Oh, wow. That's like… a lot of explosives!" Even without seeing her, 1st Lt. Piatif's sigh still somehow reached me.

Their final trump card was obvious thanks to the power of time-travel, the card being just bombing the shit out of everyone here with a HSST. Although with that much explosive, we must have forced the CIA into a dead corner for them to use such extreme measure. My last run in with this case was us just high-tailing away from the kill zone. But this time that method was thrown out the window.

"After monitoring the craft's navigation systems it has been determined that Bogey 1 will be on an acceleration course after re-entering the ionosphere, the speed will reach up to Mach 40. Based on the kinetic energy, heat-resistance and bulletproof nature of an armoured military destroyer. The blast radius will expand to twenty kilometres." That'll wipe the entire area off the map. Just how desperate were those CIA dudes?

"If they're sending in decoys, that must mean the Laser-class from Sado could also hit Bogey 1, right? Can I believe in the BETA's aiming?"

"Negative, by the time Bogey 1 comes in range of the Laser-class it'll be too late. The Professor has a counterplan to this attack. I'll explain it now." People kept crediting Yuuko-sensei with everything that I came up with, quite upsetting, actually.

 **07:41 AM**

"—Specter 1 to all units, cease movement. There is going to a one final mission before we can evac. But first, we have friendlies approaching from our 3 O'clock." As the words left my mouth. About seven TSFs emerged from the thick forest to the right of us.

"—this is Captain Isumi of A-01's 9th squadron. We have arrived to provide your squadron with the needed equipment." Isumi's message was announced over the public channel. The Royal Guards behind us caught up quickly and kept their weapons ready.

"UN support? What is your purpose here!?" Ignoring the three idiots' questioning, Isumi guided her Company directly in front of ours. One of the surface fighters, Munakata's from the looks of it, was lugging a huge crate behind its back.

"—your hostility is unnecessary, Kamiyo, Tomoe, Ebisu. Allow them to explain." Being told by Yuuhi shut the three idiots up for good. They must had been worried by any newcomers thanks to the betrayal of our American buddies.

"The Professor ordered for us to deliver a 1200mm OTH Cannon to the 207th Platoon. It is right here, —bring it over, Munakata." As I guessed, Munakata's damaged Shiranui dropped off the same massive crate and opened it for us to inspect. The content was one 1200mm as Isumi claimed, and some other attachments for adjusting many factors of the sniper itself.

"Does this package come with any other orders, Captain?"

"Negative, we were only told to bring this to your Platoon." Then Isumi got trolled hard as well, the chance of losing her life right now was real.

"Alright then, it'll take the Americans behind us about thirty minutes to reach our position at this rate. And the Insurgents even longer to reach the Yokosuka Fleet. I think I have time to give you all one last scare."

—

"And that's what'll be happening twenty one minutes from now. Any questions?" I just told them the set course of history for the next quarter of an hour. After the leading wave of absolute eye-opener, the squad showed some colourful variety of astonishment.

"No…! You can't be serious!" Class rep was the first to react after my big reveal about the eventual drop of three HSSTs.

"But why would they attack us like this?" Marimo-chan posted the second most popular concern.

"They claim the attack to be of unclear origin. But there is only two fractions left in this world that processes a HSST Fleet…" Second reaction from Meiya connected the obvious dots.

"…Are we going boom?"

"Ahaaa! Don't say that. Kei-san! Because it sounds super real right now!" Lucky for us, Mikoto stopped Ayamine's jinx.

"Awawawa… what are we gonna do, Takeru-channnn!?"

"Will we be shooting it down?" Two good questions from Kasumi and Sumika.

"That's the plan, right, Takeru-san? Right?" All my squad mates focused solely on me alone, but they weren't the only ones who heard my breakdown of the dreadful situation.

"Yuuhi-sama, anything you would like to add?" Switching away from the public channel, I pasted an ill-timed smirk over my face as I asked Yuuhi for her input.

"I have no opinion to share. As this event currently stands, my power is incapable of being of any assistance. So I will leave this matter in your hands, Shirogane. This is the time to show me again, the true strength of the UN. I pray that my faith placed in you is not for naught." After stating her view, Yuuhi remained motionless with her eyelids lowered.

"How about you, Captain? You heard about this?"

"No." Isumi gave me the simplest of answers.

"Anyone else want to say something?" No one else had the leisure to crack a bad joke or make a dumb comment. The rest of the Valkyries kept their mouths shut, knowing whatever they say wouldn't affect the final outcome anyway. The same thoughts suffused in the heads of the three idiots.

"As most of you would have guessed. We are going to have to shoot it down. Our position right now is the best we can hope for. With the Americans far behind us and the insurgents far ahead. Since we're all in the same boat here. This hopefully short operation will be kept as a secret between the UN army and the Royal Guards, that alright?"

"Tastelessly, I don't see another option." Kamiyo of the three idiots represented her unit and replied to me.

"Good, I'm gonna assume we all know what a 1200 OTH is, so no explanation for that. Once the Bogey 1 re-enters the over Antarctica, it'll break through the ionosphere a minute later over the Philippine Sea. There will be a period of time, roughly thirty seconds when the air current the Philippine Sea is only about 10 km/h. That's our golden time." I showed everyone whose data was linked with mine the coordinates to help them better understand our strategy.

"The PHILIPPINE SEA!? That spot is 2400 Kilometres from here!" Very good geographical knowledge from Marimo-chan, as expected.

"I'm not the one with the measuring tape. Per the speed and the low orbit acceleration of Bogey 1, that's when it'll be in the perfect spot for interception. I know this distance is ludicrous and probably logically impossible. I mean, it'll take our supersonic shell two minutes and thirty eight seconds to impact the target. And since we'll be tuning the cannon's functions to insure maximum velocity. We'll have only one shot, before the gun literally explodes. And if we miss, we'll be burned to a crisp along with the entire Shimoda coast in the following ten minutes, give or take." All odds were stacked sky-high against us. On the other hand, that was what made everything even more exciting, or devastating.

"No… this is impossible, it's simply just impossible…"

"This's a joke, right? Can't we just evac out of here…?" Tama and Mikoto were starting to lose it, couldn't blame them for not seeing any hope.

"I wish I hold up a sign that said 'fooled you!'. But I'm very serious. And unless you can cover 20 klicks in the next seventeen minutes, I don't see a way out of this."

"Now someone here has to do it. Someone has to carry the burden of all our lives in a gamble that would shape the course of history. I can't force any one of you to take that duty. I'll be the one to shoot if nobody volunteers, so don't come crying at me if I miss. Actually, you could do that, just not for very long, hehe. Alright, that's it, I'll give you all some time to think it over. Captain, I need your help setting up this gun."

The squad was left in the dust, each and every one of them was in pain from a wretched future. And the ones that recovered a bit faster were in hardship over this dilemma.

—

"Hayase and Suzumiya, set up the bipods by the top of that hill. Tsukiji and Munakata, clear the sightline of any obstructions. Kazama and Kashiwagi will work on connecting the cannon with the spotter satellite." Each of the called members rushed to their corresponding roles and begun the work as a step in ensuring our survival.

"You sure this will work, Shirogane?"

"Yeah, thirty percent of the time it'll work a hundred percent of the time." Isumi let out a dry laughter to gesture her loss of words and interest.

"You sure are relaxing. If that thing hits us not a scrap will be left, you know?"

"Then no one can blame us for messing up. Not too bad of a deal." Our chat was fruitless even to the very end. As veterans in our field, one sometime just knows when the time is up. Maybe that was what Isumi was feeling at this moment, or maybe she wasn't satisfied with dying having not accomplished anything.

"Let me shoot the gun, Shirogane." Her request might had been the only sane one, or it may very well ruin our chance at making it back in one piece.

"If no one from my squad volunteers, I don't see why not."

"It's all down to this then, huh? Never thought I go out by a drop ship out of all things…"

"Don't be stupid, Captain. We're going to survive this, no matter what."

"Hehe, I'll trust you on this one. Shirogane. Since ten minutes are plenty of time to get you if you lie."

—

I surveyed each of the faces shown on my screen. Meiya's appearance was calm, still and frozen. The same could be said for Yuuhi who still chose to rest in my lap. Whatever emotions the twins felt was not unveiled to the outside.

Sumika was forcing a smile on her strained face, she was never let in on any of the details of my past operations. Since she was too stupid to understand anyway. But right now, our supercomputer was powerless to brighten the mood when almost everyone she ever known could just perish in another dozen minutes.

Beside the video of her was Kasumi, the Russian girl that never removed her poker face. I had given up on forcing an expression out of Kasumi long ago. There were times when she smiled and times when she cried. But if her expression was that of nothing, that only meant she had nothing to convey. That also stood true for Ayamine, my Yakisoba addicted pet was cold down to her blood. She stared purposeless ahead, clouding her thoughts in mystery with that manner of indifference.

Class rep and Marimo-chan were similar in some aspects. Both tried to hide their worry inside, and both failed terribly. I would like to think Marimo-chan's age helped her control her distress just a bit better than Class rep. But to someone like me, their signs of anxiety could be picked up miles away.

Mikoto, on the other hand. Wasn't too bothered with hiding her panic. But that could also just be her way of relieving the others of their own fear and uncertainty. She may appear to be simply scared at first sight, but knowing her, she probably was acting this way on purpose to calm others down and letting them express their own stress.

But the last person, the only person that mattered the most, was Tama. After all, she was my first pick when it comes to anything sniping related.

"So anyone want to do it?" I broke the sombre silence without a care. But it only returned more solemn and grim than before.

"…I… I'll do it." Other than a single, quite, easily overlooked answer. No one else dared to speak.

"Cadet Tamase, can I confirm your answer?"

"…I said… I said I'll shoot it down!" Out of everyone that gathered around us, nobody was supposing for any other soldier to take that role.

"That's my girl. I knew you would be the one to accept that responsibility." Her soft blush brought well needed relaxation to our tension. Her smile was much more valuable when it very well could be her last.

—

"We still have some time so I'll go over it once more. The data is inputted into your fire control system. It'll constantly auto-correct for atmospheric conditions. Data from three spotting satellites and the airborne early-warning system will be providing real time holographic images for you. It should be just like normal, everyday sniping. Other than the fact you're shooting something about forty times the speed of sound."

After finding her convection, Tama's Fubuki linked up with the prepared 1200mm over a small hill. Her line of sight was cleared, the posture of the TSF was adjusted without issues. And now we wait, for the moment when everything could end.

"The shell is specifically modified to withstand high pressure, reduce air resistance and capable of reaching up to 7000 kilometres in range and a velocity of Mach 9. But at the cost of the entire weapon. When the shell is first fired, the inbuilt firing charges are set to maximum effectiveness. So as the shell passes through the barrel the explosive chambers within the weapon will all detonate one by one without limiters in place. So the gun will explode right after firing, it's a one and done. We don't have a second chance at this."

"What'll happen when the gun explodes?"

"To you? Nothing. Your TSF would probably just eat the shrapnel, nothing a new paintjob can't fix."

"…But what'll happen if I miss?" Tama was uncomfortable for a completely understandable reason.

"We all be dead in another nine minutes." Maybe the truth was too much, but even with the reality sinking in, Tama still held her resolve and nodded back to me without a word.

"Can I… ask you something in private?"

"Sure. We still have some time." Receiving permission from Yuuhi, I left my cockpit for her and elevated down.

—

Meeting outside of our TSFs since the start of this coup. I saw Tama reluctantly making her way closer.

"Hey, you okay, Tama?"

"I… yeah. I'm just… a little scared, I guess." Speaking her inner emotions was quite a feat for the always shy cat girl.

"That isn't irregular, I can assure you this much." I rubbed her hair around a little, she responded in a very feline like fashion by shaking her entire body.

"If I miss, will everyone really die?"

"Yeeep, all blown away." I probably was being too harsh, but the facts won't change based on my attitude.

"But… I still have to do it, right?" Her follow up came sometime later, but it was different. Her demeanor was so unwavering this time around.

"That's… debateable. I could take the shot in your place instead. I can't force you to shoot it while doubting yourself. Having second thoughts?" Such heavy burden might still be too much for Tama.

"No… it's just, somehow I feel, I'm the only one who can hit it."

"Really now?" If I just dig down to her bare feelings, her hardship may just lessen a bit. That was what I wished when I asked those counterproductive questions.

"Yes, I actually get some pretty bad panic attacks, you know? Before Takeru-san arrived here, I just forced myself to be our team's sniper. I used to be very afraid all the time, my hands shake a lot, I can't think of anything and stuff like that." She paused, surveyed around our standing and resumed to her unspoken lines.

"But after you came here, I got better. I no longer get that panicky and my shots improved greatly too. And now I think I can finally pay you back, Takeru-san. You did so much for us, so much for me too. It wouldn't be right if we rely on you any further. So I'll shoot this, because that's the only thing I can do here, because that won't leave any regret behind." For someone who carried such a gentle and weak aspect, Tama was so much more on the inside.

"Then my prayer goes out to this newfound resolve of yours, Tamase. Our fate tonight, will be yours to control."

 **07: 49 AM**

"Excuse me, Yuuhi-sama."

"Welcome back, Shirogane." Climbing back into my TSF, Yuuhi gracefully moved out of the way for me to sit down. Having her remain in my TSF surely wasn't the smartest idea. But with the wreck that was Tsukuyomi's frame, Meiya being our bait and herself uneasy. My newly found YF-23 was the best out of our choices.

"I know you understand this already, but I must rephrase this for a final time."

"If you so wish, Yuuhi-sama."

"I have no plan on dying here, Shirogane. Maybe it is more appropriate to say that I will not breathe my last yet. My unconditional faith in you and your team, do not fail me; not here, not ever." With the labyrinth of Yuuhi's mind, a supreme decision was made whiles back. She had already placed her uttermost trust in me and my squadron who I trained personally, the time to waver had since long passed.

"Your Highness, believe me. Failure has never been viable on my stage."

—

"—Specter 1 to all units. T-minus two minutes until Bogey 1 enters the target zone. Archer 4, current condition?"

"—shell loaded, safety off, weapon sight aligned and waiting to fire." Tama's reply was that of a professional sharpshooter.

"Copy that. All units on standby clear the line of fire. Archer 4, calm down and await firing command."

My TSF was standing over Tama's left shoulder while Sumika was over her left. Our roles were team leader and tactical spotter respectively. The morning sun just recently peeked its bright head over the horizon, with its beaming sunshine raining down upon those whose lives were on the doorstep of the after world. Our final struggle against this misfortune that was our fate begun with no grand opening of any kind.

"Archer 1, are you connected with the spotting satellite?"

"—I just got it, uploading the real time images now." Now, others didn't know this, but Sumika's superpower of hacking electronics was applied here to directly link us with the satellite. Instead of redirecting it through other networks, marking our usage as first priority provided the data with less delay.

The first two decoys became visual around the 70 seconds mark. They fell and fell, coming from different origins but aiming for the same objective, Sadogashima. As they glided toward the home to Japan's most hated enemy.

Pure, unadulterated energy beams light illuminated the dawning sky. It only took mere seconds for both HSSTs to be burnt down to its very core, but only the HSSTs. From inside the wreckage burst out dozens of re-entry Shells, some earlier than others. Viewing those as the next priority targets. Another light show underwent, resulting in even more wasted military fund by the Americans.

Funny enough, no one here cared the slightest, for the weapon that would begin on our doom has yet to appear.

"T-minus sixty seconds until Bogey 1 reaches target zone. Prepare for interception." Slowly and slowly, seconds passed us by as the team's stress level reached an all-time high.

"T-minus thirty seconds until interception." The pressure in the air was so tense for a few seconds I swear it metalized right before my eyes. Everything we ever fought for, everything we'll ever fight for here on out depended on Tama's performance. But there was never doubt in my mind that she will never disappoint us, not here nor in the distant future.

"T-minus eleven seconds, ten… nine… eight… seven… six… five… four… three… two… one."

—

"SHOT OUT!"

With Tama's soul filled yell. The cannon exploded from the back to the tip. Pieces of newly formed scrap metals ruptured everywhere. The gun reduced down to hundreds of small pieces that no doubt will leave a lot of cleaning work if we didn't properly warp it. But before its destruction, the weapon served its final purpose. Launching the single shell out of its barrel and toward a lone, tiny target up in the heavens.

And now we wait, to turn three minutes into an eternity was just this easy.

" _Takeru-chan, do you think she'll hit it?_ " Sumika requested me answer a question that I honestly had no way to solve.

"Everyone, don't worry. It'll hit." As if Tama could understand our mental conversion. The response Sumika sought after came from none other than the sniper herself.

"…Tamase, how can you be…" Being the most down to earth person, Class rep showed a minor sign of uncertainty.

"I know, I just know." Tama's confidence originated within her own heart, there was no use questioning something as pure and powerful as her very will.

—

"Shell impact in five, four, three, two, one… Target destroyed! No sign on radar! YES! We did it, Takeru-chan!" Sumika shouted, no, screamed her giant head off right into her microphone.

"Shut up, woman! I know!"

"Ehehe, I did it, Takeru-san!" Cries of cerebration rang within the headphones of everyone around, but no one cared about the feasible danger to their hearing when their lives were saved by the skin of their teeth. Or maybe it was never in danger in the first place.

"There was never a doubt in my mind, Tama. Now let's go home."

"Okay, Takeru-san!"

 **Yokohama Base 08:34 AM**

The rest of our journey was lackluster in comparison. Both the former rebels and the Americans asked about the sudden noise and the falling HSSTs. But with no evidence on their hands, playing dumb was never easier.

 **December 6, 2001**

 **Yokohama Base, Conference room**

"It's my honour to meet Your Highness. I am Kouzuki Yuuko, Vice-Commander of Yokohama Base."

"Kouzuki, are you the one behind Alternative IV?"

"Yes, I'm the director of the fourth Alternative plan."

"It is to my understanding that you are the one who constructed core of this project."

"Yes, allow me to clarify…"

—

"I see. Thank you for your explanation. I am glad that my faith in this project has not been wasted."

"Thank you very much, Your Highness."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Ahha… this is life…" Nothing unknots the body like a cold shower after half a day of intense fighting.

Around six in the morning was when we finally returned to our good-old base located at Yokohama. The moment I exited my TSF with Yuuhi, mountains of guards, escorts and medical personnel rushed to her aid. Only to be called off by Yuuhi herself, saying that there was much more important matters at hand. She then proceeds to ask for an immediate appointment with whoever was in charge of this base before disappearing into the hallways. Couldn't call it disappearing, actually, considering the waves of people chasing after her.

Our squad was relieved of duty as well. Seeing the fatigue of my team was on a quite high level, I dismissed them right after a short speech. The current time is about eight-ish. Once I changed clothes and returned to my own room, a shower was the most logical step to take.

"Is someone present?" Said a person outside my room as the door was lightly knocked.

"Yeah! Just give me a minute!" Quickly wiping myself dry and donning a pair of trousers over my boxer shorts. I opened the day with a towel over my shoulders.

"I am here t—" And who decided to drop in while I was only wearing my pants? Yuuhi, of course.

"…Ahhaa…" Her face flustered with crimson red. The eyes that used to be filled with confidence and determination was now scrambling with panic, unsure of where to lay her gaze.

"Your Highness, please come in." Acting absolutely unbothered by my body, I invited Yuuhi inside.

"But you are… then… if you do not mind." Yuuhi's hesitance here would just made her look foolish and unprepared. So she sucked in her conscious toward me and entered.

"Sorry, I don't have any tea and stuff ready."

"Do not worry yourself over such small matter. My visit is unannounced, after all." I led her to a chair in my room. For me, I just opted to sit on the bed.

"So then, to what honour do I owe for this visit, Yuuhi-sama?"

"Ah… yes. I was just… thinking about… coming and calling you to our meeting…" Yuuhi was extremely distracted by my naked chest. Normally, this would be embarrassing even for me. But my inner troll was screaming within my mind, telling me to enjoy this moment to its fullest.

"Well, I got nothing else going on so let's get going. Or is there something else you would like, Yuuhi-sama?"

"Emm… yes. I…" Without noticing it herself, Yuuhi stretched her hand and tried to touch my stomach. It was amusing how absorbed she was with my body. Her hand rubbed my belly region, around my abs and over the aged scar left by the primary target.

"Such a…" I wouldn't say I was the most muscular person on earth, far from it, actually. But my muscles were very balanced with my body size, they were normally not obvious through my clothes. But without any cover, I would like to think they serve the role of a great attraction.

"Having fun, Yuuhi-sama?" Calling her name suddenly had brought her attention back to reality.

"Ahh…! No! I was just… I was just pondering the reason behind your scars." That was the best excuse for such a desperate situation, I mentally applauded Yuuhi for it.

"I would like to think of these as prove, evidence that I am a soldier. Although it also reminds me of my failure." Not counting the mark left by that octopus, I was still covered in wounds and cuts from all of my past traumas and deaths.

"I see, you also have a difficult history behind yourself. I apologize."

"No need, Yuuhi-sama. That's just who I am, everyone in this world have memories like that, right? Nothing makes me special." Yuuhi showed some expression of grief. But the state of this world was nothing she could change in any form.

"Em, yes. As I was saying before, I came here to inform you that your presence is required by the Vice-Commander. You are to attend our meeting as soon as possible."

"Alright then, let me get changed." Again, Yuuhi blushed burning red at my statement.

"Ah… wait! …Allow me to excuse myself first!"

"Nah, it's fine. I won't be taking anything off."

 **Conference room**

"Kurechika-dono. I am grateful for your safety above all else."

"No, I should be the one to rejoice for your Highness's wellbeing." Well, this certainly was an awkward session we have going on here.

"Psst, so why did Yuuhi come and got me personally?"

"Don't ask me, the Professor was going to send a guard or something. But she insisted to do it herself." Standing in the corner was me and Isumi, two leaders of our Special Task Force units. Mine team may have yet to be formalized, but those were mere details.

"Since our time here is short, I will only ask you this one question. Your passion toward the people of my country and your sense of duty does not appear to be a lie. Are you willing to reform our nation together with myself?" And sitting on the sofas were Yuuhi, Prime Minister Sakaki and Yuuko-sensei. No doubt discussing some top secret stuff that I had no interest in.

"Of course, Your Highness." It appeared that things were going well, Yuuhi took my side long ago and the Prime Minister had no reason to refuse our offer that aligned with his own belief.

—

"Allow me to introduce the two commanders of A-01. This is Captain Isumi Michiru, the Platoon leader of A-01's 9th squadron." Finally done with whatever crap they had to converse about, the attention of the three adults by age shifted to us.

Pointing to Isumi first, Yuuko-sensei briefly went over her role as the team captain.

"It is my pleasure to meet you, Capt. Isumi." Taking Yuuhi's hand and shaking it adamantly, Isumi let off a very professional smile of confidence and humbleness.

"I am extremely honoured by your words, Your Highness."

"And I'm sure you know 1st Lt. Shirogane."

"I am very grateful for your assistance in this entire affair." Shaking her hand with more leisure than Isumi. I smiled back genuinely at her generous words.

"It is my honour to be granted such a role, Your Highness."

"Please, just address me as Yuuhi." How bold, asking me to address her by her name in front of Yuuko-sensei and the Prime Minister. But this could mean Yuuhi was getting more comfortable with me.

"As Your Highness already knows, the A-01 Task Force is the main muscle for Alternative IV. Their high casualty rate stemming from high-risk missions doesn't place us in a good spot. As I'm not some sort of politician who sugar-coats her words all day, I'll be very blunt in my request. When the necessary time comes, can we depend on support from the Imperials?" So that must have been Yuuko-sensei's wish all this time. Receiving help from the country that we resided in certainly would be a tremendous boost to our efficiency.

"Of course, as the Shogun of Japan. I plan on fully supporting this project to its realization." Yuuhi unquestionably changed ever since the coup. She no longer withholds her own thoughts, instead opting to directly accepting or denying other's demand.

"How about you, Prime Minister Sakaki?"

"I have no objection as well."

 **Hallway**

"Do you have a minute, 1st Lt. Shirogane?"

"Huh? Yes, sir." I was called by Class rep's old man after the meeting wrapped up. I was just on my way back to my room when he caught me in one of the corridors.

"It is to my knowledge that my daughter is part of your squad."

"Indeed she is, sir." Conversions between men should be as straight to the point as possible. Talking with a normal male other than Yoroi really reminded me of that trait.

"Here, give this to her." A small case was passed on to me. From its shape, no doubt it was for contentment of a pair of glasses.

"Glasses, sir? For Cadet Sakaki?" My covert involvement in inviting Prime Minister Sakaki mustn't be made public, hence the act of playing dumb.

"Yes, is she wearing a pair as of now?"

"Have you not met her yourself, sir?" Class rep's father looked off in the distance for some time.

"…No, I have not."

"That's… unfortunate. But to answer your question, sir. She is currently donning a different pair provided by the Professor. They're of higher quality than her old frame, or so I heard." Of course actual American made glasses was are better than two big circles.

"Is that so. Then do as you see fit with these. My schedule is tight so I will be taking my leave now."

"Goodbye, sir."

 **Koubuin Yuuhi**

 **Yokohama Base, Medical bay**

"Tsukuyomi, how are you faring?" Entering the medical bay alone, Yuuhi visited Tsukuyomi. Who was calmly resting on a white bed wearing a hospital gown and bandage on her head.

"—Your Highness! I—" Tsukuyomi move instantly to pay respect, only to have her movement limited by the pain of sudden motion.

"Do not worry yourself with manner, Tsukuyomi. Stay still and recover to the best of your ability, I cannot afford the risk of further wounding you." Putting her hands on the patient's shoulders, Yuuhi slowly relaxed her retainer.

"Ma'am. I am extremely sorry for my action. I must atone for my unforgivable crime of leaving Meiya-sama unattended." Lowering her head as much as possible, Tsukuyomi did everything she was capable of at the moment to show her repent.

"There is no need for such offset. You have performed your duty with uttermost excellence. What ought be prepared naturally should be your reward. However, I cannot grant your deserved honour until this distress is sorted." A slight, but warm smile from Yuuhi cleared Tsukuyomi of any guilt.

"Ma'am. But I am afraid such honour is wasted on me…"

"Nonsense. Taking yourself lightly is equal to taking the trust I have placed in you lightly as well."

"Your Highness, I… apologize for having such a thought." Finally coming to terms with herself, Tsukuyomi was able to truly accept her action as just.

"I may not be the best person to inform you of this. Nevertheless, your TSF is being transported to a factory that belongs to the Fugaku Heavy Industries for repair. In the meantime, another Takemikazuchi, a Fudai yellow Type-00F will be delivered here in a few days for your usage."

"Thank you very much, Your Highness."

"Your duty has not changed, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. Continue to protect my precious sister from any harm that might befall her. Your new TSF is a symbol of my conviction in you, do not disappoint me." Spoken like a true leader, Tsukuyomi was exposed to a side of Yuuhi she didn't think existed before.

"Thank you very much. My life is dedicated to your command, Your Highness."

"One more before my departure, keep your eyes out for that Shirogane."

"…Is there something dangerous about that man, Your Highness?" Seeing Tsukuyomi taking her words the wrong way caused Yuuhi a little panic.

"No, that is not the case. He is… a man of great interest, to me personally… please watch him as well."

"Your Highness… you don't mean…?" Afraid of Tsukuyomi guessing her true intent, Yuuhi averted her gaze by rotating her body in haste.

"…D-do not misunderstand! I-I am simply intrigued by his abilities, that is all."

"Huhu… of course, Your Highness." Hearing Tsukuyomi's quite giggle turned Yuuhi back around; but by that time, Tsukuyomi's entertained side was already long gone.

"Very well, I pray for your fast recovery to good health."

"Thank you very much, Your Highness."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Yokohama Base, Port**

"At 10:56 hours, all insurgent forces had willingly surrendered. Also the same time, the Sendai Provisional Government declared the coup d'état over. A few moments ago, martial law in the capital was lifted. It is also worth noting that the Kantou area is undergoing recovery as we speak."

We were waiting for Yuuhi by the piers. The time was about one in the afternoon, we saved around five hours compared to my first loop. The crew lined up on the docks by the battleship which Yuuhi will soon embark to return to the capital.

"—Atten-tioooon!" The soldiers were doing their whole ceremonial bullet wasting thing so I kept my mouth shut. Yuuhi was slowly making progress to where my squad stood.

"—Training Squad 207! Attention! —salute the Japanese Imperial Grand Shogun, Her Highness Koubuin Yuuhi!" The squad jumped to a strict posture and elevated their right arm to their forehead.

"You may relax."

"—at ease, squad." I had done my share of shouting earlier this day.

"I, Yuuhi Koubuin, give you my greatest thanks for your efforts this day. This incident has carved deep sadness into the hearts of our country, and of the world. However, from this I learned a precious lesson. You who stand here today are the proof that my choice is not a mistake. Your squad, with all its connections to this tragedy, came together and performed with selfless courage to overcome this hardship. Such wills are to be revered."

We stood still while Yuuhi spoke to us as a group. It was unfortunate that I couldn't introduce the rest of my squad to Yuuhi specifically. But as long as we exist, there will be many other chances.

"I will remember this incident as when my eyes finally opened to this reality. This painful reality that I will change. The UN, the Empire and all individuals may value different things. But I believe their goals… their fundamental wishes are one and the same."

"So I will bring all their wishes together, to prevent any more misunderstandings and calamities from occurring. This is a promise that I give to all those brave soldiers who fought for their own beliefs in this battle. I may not be able to foresee the future when we defeat our enemy. So I trust you all… with humanity's future."

"Ma'am!" Then for the first time, in front of all. Yuuhi bowed her head down toward us ordinary cadets of the UN. The group panicked quickly, not knowing the proper procedure for when the Shogun takes a bow.

"Thank you, Shirogane Takeru. I believe that you are a man capable of shaping this world. For without you, I would still be lost within my own haven." Yuuhi took my hands and shook them firmly. Much to the awe of the rest of my team.

"Yuuhi-sama. We will be the ones to create our own future. A tomorrow where humanity can finally welcome peace. A tomorrow where nothing can stop our victory." She was standing before me, peering with a gentle resolution.

"That attribute of you must be what makes you so attractive as a leader. However, as the Shogun myself, I must show my own resolve with actions." Following those words, Yuuhi's two feet placed her right in front of Meiya, who was utterly unsure of the Shogun's intentions.

"Meiya, I have for the longest time, hoped to one day speak with you without formality of our roles. Please, give me this one chance… see me as who I am."

"Your… Your Highn— Your Hig— Aneue… but I—" Meiya was barely strong enough to hold back the river of tears that was on the verge of leaking from her eyes. Her hands were clenched tight by Yuuhi's own.

"Meiya… at last, I will not allow anything to come between us from here on out. I may be incompetent in being your sister, for I have forced this fate upon you… but No longer. Please remember, my love for you will never diminish." Yuuhi brought her arms around to held Meiya tightly in a firm, family embrace.

"…Aneue… Aneue!" Meiya's teardrops could no longer be clogged with her muscles alone.

"…Meiya, I wish for you to take this."

"Aneue… this is…" The same colourless doll was passed from Yuuhi to Meiya's hands.

"Even if I cannot be next to you. Don't forget your sister who always loves you deeply."

"Aneue… this doll… will accompany me throughout this life." Meiya gripped the doll firmly. Her first real gift from the one who should be with her since the beginning.

"Thank you, Meiya. With this, you shall live for yourself. My only younger sibling also has her own life, does she not? The dark night will forever match to the dawn. Each will protect the other, caring for their counterpart."

"Even if the chance of encounter is low. One cannot be without the other…" The symbolic speech probably suited them better than any farewell.

And with that, Yuuhi departed to pursue the duty that she alone can achieve. The ship might have sailed for now, but I never doubt for a second that the day of our reunion won't arrive.

—

"Mikoto, the 11th Army Military Police Corps has subpoenaed you." I called for Mikoto after a brief rundown with the cops.

"—Eh!?"

"It probably has something to do with your dad. Whatever happens, just remember that your father is doing everything he can for our country, ok?" I couldn't help Mikoto anymore than reassuring her of Yoroi's innocence.

—

"To all the people of my beloved Japan… I sincerely apologize for forcing such lengthy and demanding trials upon all of you. This incident, this rebellion, took place because young lives sought to correct the faults of the state, my own imperfections. While their deeds are surely not ones which may be forgiven. It is with their effort, and the sacrifice of Japan's people. That I have awakened to the situation which demanded my attention for such a long time."

"The price you all paid was high, it is a price that I should be paying for in your place. My own blindness has given birth to this disastrous misunderstanding which should have been prevented. I will not allow those lives that were lost to be wasted. The soldiers and the people of this country paved the road ahead, so that I can carry their dying wills to a better tomorrow. A future that is only possible because the people of Japan brought strength and pride back into our own hearts."

"The ending of this prolonged war remains out of reach, a fact that surely brings great anxiety to all of you. However, the seeds of hope have already been laid. The goal of a better tomorrow may not be so far. So I ask for you all, the people of Japan. To trust me, as your Shogun. I vow here that I will give my everything, for the future of our nation."

 **Author's note**

And here ends the 12/5 incident arc, hopefully everyone enjoyed it somewhat. Not much else to say, really. Following this will be the next arc, (obviously) and following that will be the next, next arc.

Speaking of arcs, the Total Eclipse arc is definitely happening so, that's that. I would like to think of everyone as fans of the Muv-Luv series, and if you're a fan, you probably watched the TE anime at some point. (And you probably didn't like it too much.)

So to anyone that haven't seen the anime yet, I would tell you to go watch it since you won't understand my next arc if you don't watch it. I know it's not too good and all that, but try just turning off a bit of your brain and try to enjoy the CG TSF fights. (Which also could be better...) Anyway, go watch the anime if you have time or further reading of this story may lead to absolute confusion.

I won't explain the anime plot for TE but will touch base on what happens after that, so it should make sense as long as you understand the anime plot. And to the VN players, you just to deal with some change in details, sorry. Then again, with the Muv-Luv universe based on world branches and parallel worlds and stuff, I'll just say it's the world's fault for inaccuracies to VN.

One last thing, I have no confidence on the proper terms for the part when the direction of the HSST was told to Shirogane. So to military people out there, sorry and if you can tell me the proper method of saying the heading of an aircraft, I'll appreciate it.

BETA done by chad001, because chad1 to 99 are all taken.


	17. At home where the victors live

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 06, 2001**

 **The rooftop**

"Why don't you just setup camp here? I'll help move your furniture."

"Takeru… stupid talk." That was along what I figured from Ayamine.

After sending off Yuuhi abroad that ship of hers. I dismissed my team for the rest of this day, other than Mikoto, who was unfortunately arrested for whatever Yoroi did. She should be out soon so I wasn't too worried, but it still gave me an uneasy feeling.

"Those letters, you getting rid of them?" At this time, I was atop of the base, conversing with the same stoic Ayamine who sat with her legs crossed on the chilly winter floor, her back facing the entrance that I came from. I stood over her shadow, staring down the top of her raven coloured head.

"Yeah… I can finally put these letters of regret to rest." The said envelopes were all bunched up together in a neat pile beside her. Not once had Ayamine turned around to face me. It was kind of a tradition we have, speak to each other's backs. But it was just me speaking to hers most of the time.

"Is that so. Then I guess I'm not needed here." An icy wind blew by that I took as my signal to exit, but my sleeve was seized before I could gain some distance.

"Wait… stay with me."

"If you say so." Not wasting my energy, I also joined Ayamine on the roof's floor. Sitting back to back with her as I straightened out my legs. We rested in total silence for what felt like hours. It was the sound of wrapping paper that eventually broke our solitude.

"You are going to rip those?"

"Yeah."

"That's going to take ages, you know?" With my sight unfocused away from her, I thought of a better idea than manual labour. I pulled my trusty lighter out of my pocket. This thing hadn't seen any action since I stopped smoking, now was a good chance for it to get some screen-time.

"Here, use this." The sensation of a weight being lifted from my outreached left hand was how I knew Ayamine had received my lighter.

"Takeru, you smoke?"

"Used to." The sound of my lighter being toyed around with was heard. But I believed Ayamine to be mature enough to avoid self injury.

"Got a pack?"

"Yep."

"…Pass it here." An outrageous demand almost caused me to turn around. Still, my laziness and the atmosphere suppressed my curiosity to observe Ayamine's expression.

"Can't do that, you're still a minor, you know? I can't have you die from lung cancer of all things."

"So? My life expectancy says otherwise." Ayamine used my old argument perfectly against myself.

"That's… true. But still, it'll be a pain in the ass if you get addicted."

"I just want to try… I can't?" While unethical, I couldn't think of a reason to reject her. So I took my cigarettes out of my pocket and passed a single stick to her.

"Thanks." Again, the sound of a lighted lighter and burning paper was perceived.

"How is it?" I asked after a dozen seconds.

"…Tastes like shit…"

"Because you would know what shit tastes like." No response came from Ayamine for my witty remark.

"I don't want it anymore." She tried to hand me an almost unconsumed cigarette which I took without thinking.

"Ah, just remembered. I can't smoke anymore." The promise I made flashed in my mind moments before my mouth came in contact with the tapping paper.

"That's not fair, you have to finish it."

"Don't be ridiculous, woman. I have to do no such thing." Her prescriptive was lost to me.

"Fine… I'll take it. But you have to turn around." Noticing nothing wrong with her request, I rotated my body 180 degrees and crossed my legs as well. Ayamine took the stick while still facing away and inhaled a great quantity at once.

"Hey! Don't overdo it now! Breathing in that much isn't good for your body—" Before my complaint could be finished, Ayamine turned herself around and kissed my lips with rapid speed. Replying immediately, our tongues wrestled within our mouths, enjoying a moment of arousal before I backed off due to lack of oxygen.

"…And why?" My only question was a direct one.

"I was sharing the smoke with you, since you don't smoke yourself." Such air-tight logic, for a toddler maybe.

"That's not how things worked, woman. We just French kissed for no reason." Ayamine blushed slightly, then was overshadowed by her much more apparent grin.

"Did you like it?" Ayamine passed me the rest of my cigarette during that question, which I carefully put out and wrapped with tinfoil. We have enough things hurting this earth as is.

"I did, but that changes nothing." I was still a good, honest boy.

"Then it's fine… I liked it too."

"That's great. While I don't mind tonguing a pretty girl, I still would like a reason." Her blush increased in intensity and her gaze shifted elsewhere. However, after a short while, Ayamine's appearance became melancholic with a bit of remorse.

"…You know, you're the second person who hid their smoking from me."

"That's not right, I didn't hide anything." Accusation without proper evidence doesn't make a case.

"My dad… I didn't know that he smoked." And neither did I.

"Really now?" But the difference was how I didn't care.

"Yeah." Ayamine was clearly recalling old times from the way her pupils drifted around.

"I first saw him do it when I was little. He was outside on the balcony, talking about something with Sagiri. Dad tried to offer him a cigarette but Sagiri refused quickly. That's all I remember." What a lackluster ending that was.

"Wasn't Sagiri around your age?"

"I think so, probably why he didn't take it." Made much more sense this way.

"That's great, so your point is?"

"Takeru… making the girl say it… so shameless." That comment followed by her smirk was a little pissy, but was also the reason I love Ayamine. Having just thought up of a proper response, I rested my hands on her knees and looked at her with gentle eyes.

"Look here, I don't care that much about your father and the truth behind what happened to him. Just like everything else, this is about viewpoint. Either you believe your father did the right thing, or he did not. I can't tell you what to pick because I'm not you."

"…Then tell me what you think." Being truthful here could hurt Ayamine a lot. Then again, holding but would only hurt her more.

"I think he made a mistake. By saving those few civilians and abandoning his duty, he collapsed the defence line and caused massive casualty to our forces. While I do understand his resolve of saving the citizens, it's dubbed as a failure for good reasons."

"…I see." A dejected light was reflected in her beautiful eyes.

"But none of this matters. Whether it's right or wrong, you father is dead. Nothing can change that. But you're still here, and that means you can choose. If you ever feel that my command isn't the right one, feel free to just disobey it. If you're ready for the consequences of making a mistake, my back is always open to you." If I went so far as to be killed by one of my closest friends, I will accept it with no problem.

"I'll never do that." Her line was said with utmost confidence in me. I almost got caught off guard and failed to return her of determination.

"Thank you, Ayamine. May I perceive your reason?" Taking a rare, but sincere attitude, I asked Ayamine a question I already knew the answer to.

"You'll never betray me."

"No, no I will not." Her stare was powerful, it felt that all her emotion was gathered in one place. And all her effort was put into delivering that feeling to me.

"You also trust me… right?" Our cosy conversion was directed to a different topic.

"Of course, how can I leave myself in your hands if I don't?"

"But… but I failed you… I failed everyone…" Ayamine lowered her head on my chest as to hide her features from my sight. She was warm and cozy even on this December night, her skin that came in contact with my own was smooth and bloomy just as she always had been.

"It's not your fault, you know?" It didn't take me three guesses to think of what was bothering Ayamine.

"I was so confident… I thought I had them." She must be blaming herself for what happened during the coup, it was only natural for cadets to lose it under such circumstances.

"This probably sounds old, but everyone's first was like that." Mine would be a great example.

"I got so scared… for myself! How pathetic was that!?" Ayamine glared at me with such intense guilt, sorrow and a bit of anger at herself.

"You're still alive, right? It shouldn't matter that much."

"But… it does. I can't just forget about it…" It was a bit nostalgic how Ayamine was acting like the old me.

"Alright, I'm gonna be honest with you. Yeah, that was pretty pathetic."

"Eh…?"

"You were screaming your head off like a little bitch that just can't get it together. It certainly didn't help anyone, Meiya was so distracted that she almost got taken out as well. If I didn't save your dumbass back there, you'll be pounded meat. Happy now?" Now I just needed to make sure no Soldier-class sneak up on me and finish this lesson.

"I… that was… really hurtful." Women are so difficult.

"Argg, what do you want me to say then? I tried comforting which clearly didn't work. So I went with insulting you, but you complained about that too."

"I…!" And no comeback came.

"Look here, like I was telling you. Everyone's first time is like that. I certainly got scared shitless when I thought I was about to die. Now don't spread this, but Marimo-chan told me she was also the same."

"The Instructor?" I could clearly recall that talk with Marimo-chan, but now wasn't the best of places to think.

"Yeah, that's a story for another time. My point is, I'm not asking you to be a superhuman or something. Because I'm not one, all you need to do is to not die. That's all I'm asking here. You can cry, shout or beg for your life, but no matter what happens, I won't let you die. That's my goal here."

"…Why? Soldiers aren't treated like that." Words may not deliver the point across so I firmly held Ayamine by her shoulders and stared her right back.

"Because none of you are mere soldiers in my eyes. You all are so, so much more. And I cannot and will not ever lose you, Ayamine." Ayamine blushed. It wasn't her normal blush, it was a blush of affection, and I was confident it was for me to see.

"I actually… have something to tell you." Finding now to be the perfect time for a distraction, Ayamine attempted to drive away the topic.

"About what?" Playing dumb had its own merits.

"Takeru… are you an S?"

"Think for yourself, woman. Or maybe your training isn't enough yet."

"…How ruthless." And then she went quite, I didn't feel generous enough to help her with whatever she wanted to express.

"We can sit here all day, and you'll never get any assistance from me."

"That's fine." That called for a change of tactic.

"Nevermind, gotta go." I worked my legs to provide the energy required to get up from sitting. But Ayamine grabbed me by the collar, hard, before I could stand up.

And out of nowhere. Our lips touched for a second time with she reached forward forcefully, it was filled with her intense passion and strong feeling, which I rapidly responded in kind by kissing her back just as ardently.

"Ahh… Takeru… I lov—" Finally letting my mouth free after dozens of seconds, Ayamine's follow up confession was stopped half way.

"You… you're probably not ready to say it yet." While her boldness was greatly appreciated, I didn't think my answer was good to go just yet. When did I collect this much Ayamine flags anyway? If this was the Causality Conductor thing at work, it would make my conquest a whole lot easier.

"No… I don't want to wait. I'm ready." Her crimson flush was deep, but her resolution was deeper.

"I don't think you'll be happy with what I say, won't you be patient a bit longer?"

"No, I'll be fine with whatever you decide." The pair of eyes that looked me back was filtered of any distraction and second thoughts. Ayamine had one goal that day and she was going to achieve it no matter the cost.

"Wow, you got really demanding, abruptly."

"Because I want this." Her new method of direct attack proved to be much more effective than I would have thought.

"But… there're others…"

"It's fine… I'm okay with not being number one." A little guilt leaked into my heart, but it was overshadowed instantly by the overwhelming joy.

"…Are you sure that's okay? I won't be very faithful, you know?"

"It… it's fine. I never thought I alone could be enough… Takeru… too alpha." That truth always brought music to my ears.

"Why're you acting like this anyhow? Was it something I did?"

"…I don't know, but I don't want to lose… You. Mitsurugi was the same." She must have seen another that shared her feelings for me, causing her to react in such a way. I didn't want the girls to seriously fight over me if I can help it, but it's never that much of a concern.

"One last time then, are you absolutely certain about having this kind of relationship with me?"

"Takeru… I love you." Could be that it was too abrupt, or maybe keeping myself in check wasn't a bad idea; yet, if Ayamine really asked for this, even if it was on the spur of the moment. I didn't want to deny her of any wish.

"Good enough answer." With no delay, our tongues wrapped around each other and explored the very details of the other's mouth.

—

"Takeru… more…"

"I don't want to freeze to death here. Your room should be good enough."

"No… here's fine. I… I can't wait any longer." While not satisfying her yearning had its own appeal, I was also running low on patience.

"…Munm… but it's cold." Stopping our kissing for a second of normal speech wasn't an option any longer.

"Use these… mwwa… as sheet…" Not bothering to pull her tongue out, Ayamine took the letters off the ground and passed them to me. Seeing no other alternative, I clumsily laid out the paper with my hand while the other was working its way around her body.

"Mmmwah… hurry…"

"Shut up."

The next few windless hours were the most enjoyable and uncomfortable hours of my life.

 **December 07, 2001**

 **Ayamine's room**

"Woman, wake up already." No response from the comatose girl that was resting on my chest.

If I must say, yesterday was kinda fun, in one way or another. After two rounds on the rooftop, we relocated back to Ayamine's room where the long night only extended to greater length. In conclusion, because talking about it in detail is weird; it was a good distraction from my day to day activities and more importantly, it shortened the distance between me and Ayamine, both mentally and physically.

Ayamine was still dead asleep with her hands wrapped around my back. I carefully pushed her off my body and covering her naked self with the blanket instead before getting on my two feet and redressing. I thought about putting her clothes for her, but seeing how unresponsive she was it was probably better to leave Ayamine to her own device. Guess it's true that no one will help you out once you're fucked, so many meanings.

"Hey, I'll be going now, you hear?" Having finished dressing, I checked up on the normally cool girl. I only said normally because it certainly wasn't the case last night. My words reached a pair of deaf ears as Ayamine was still in deep slumber. I should really learn to control my personality these days.

"…Wait." Calling me out on the last second was a sleepy Ayamine, her drowse that surrounded this room was no longer with us. Instead, she looked up; with a strange yet pleasant smile.

"Good morning, Ayamine."

"Morning." I returned to her bedside while she casually took off the sheet that shrouded her wonderful body from the outside. Seeing those assets again was tugging my urges the wrong way. But since it was only the morning and I plan to not spend my entire day completely wreck— pleasuring Ayamine, my self-control kicked in to preserve my image as a gentleman.

"So then, I'll be going now. What're you gonna do today?"

"We have these days off, right?" She asked her question after putting on a simple t-shirt and jeans. I didn't see any underwear being donned, then again, assumption can only end up as assumptions.

"Yep, the team is free until further notice."

"…What'll you do now?" Her second question was before she adjusted her hair and put on her shoes.

"Just gonna wander around for today, nothing to do, really."

"No… I mean about us." And even if nobody knew, I loved discussing relationship problems like a middle-class housewife, I really did. Yep, sure did.

"What do you want us to be like?"

"…I don't know." No matter what anyone says, I still felt a bit cheap for bedding her right after what should be seen as a confession. But at our time, the luxury of having a normal affair was just not there.

"There aren't many things I can promise you. There are others who seek what you seek, and I won't turn down anyone without a good reason. You know what I mean, right?" Ayamine shunned away from my passionate gaze, she must be hurt too from my behaviour. A sense of regret was creeping up my throat and threating to leave my mouth in the form of an apology. But that would only make Ayamine feel more used than now.

"…Then tell me, where am I… on your list?" Do I even have a list? If I do, it must be too unclear for me to read it.

"I don't know."

"Then who is in first place?"

"…I don't know." I will never be able to sort out my feelings regarding the girls of my life. They're too precious, too significant and valuable for me to ever find a favourite.

"Do you know anything?"

"…I know that I love you as well, Ayamine. If one day love can be measured somehow, then that's when you'll find your answer. Until then, my emotions are unknown even to myself; but know that, even if the amount is ambiguous, my love for you is very real. One of the only real things left about me, that is." Her mouth hung open for a short while before Ayamine snapped back to her senses. Her emotion was in between shocked, glad and a bit of uncertainly.

"…I'm not fitting… I… don't deserve you…"

"That's not true, Ayamine. I love you and I'm willing to do anything for you."

"…Then I have a request." She spoke again after a few dreadful seconds, or maybe they were enjoyable seconds.

"Go ahead."

"Can you call me Kei… when it's the two of us?" Ayamine watched me closely with eyes of impatience. She wanted my answer, she demanded the distance between us to be condensed even further.

"I thought you didn't like that."

"…Things change." Very true indeed.

"Then Kei. Know that no matter the time or place, I love you. Even if this feeling isn't exclusive, even when there are times when I may go to others. My love for you will never diminish and I will always hold you dear." She hid her blush to her best ability, but it wasn't enough to disguise it from me.

"I know it's a little late, but I'll ask you one last time, it'll be the final chance you have to hate me. Ayamine Kei, will you accept my feelings?"

I didn't exactly receive my answer in words. Instead, Ayamine rushed me and pushed me to the floor for a long, tedious but delicious kiss.

"Muun… Takeru, I love you!" Getting to hear emotions in her words was a treasure beyond many people's wildest dreams. But for me who is destined to take everything, hopefully; this was the second step in my conquest— of girls as well as the world.

 **Hallway**

"~Nananananan ~Batguy! Batguy~! ~Nanananana~! Batguy~!" Singing very awfully to myself was entertaining to a certain degree. Definitely not that effective at diverting my attention from last night's activity, especially my sore back.

Having bid my goodbye to Ayam— Kei, she's Kei now. We went our separate ways for our day-off.

"~Never gonna give you up~ Never gonna let you—"

"…Just, what do you think you're doing, squad leader Takeru?" My amazing performance was interrupted by a super disappointed Class rep.

"No, you saw nothing, understand?"

"What? You were clearly just singing to yourself seconds ago—"

"You. Saw. Nothing." Class rep flinched a little from my excessive menace. But she only sighed in return.

"Okay, okay! I didn't see you sing or anything like that, fine?"

"Alright, good girl!" My attempt at a head-pat was rudely slapped away, but the frenzy on Class rep's face had brought her my mercy.

"Please! Don't… do that." The awkwardness between us got turned up to eleven all at once.

"What? Has nobody ever patted your head before?" My line was said as a joke, but clearly, Class rep didn't take it as such.

"No… it's just… sorry, I was overreacting." She avoided my vision and turned to leave. But that was also when I realized the situation.

"Hey! Did you get to meet your father?" My shouted question stopped Chizuru in her track.

"…That's… none of your business, isn't it?" She answered while facing away from me.

"I prefer for everything to be my business. But if it's really personal for you, I won't ask. Just know I'm always free if you want me." There wasn't any reason to force a reply out of Class rep right away. Her father was fine, and that was all that mattered.

"Actually… have you see him around yesterday, Takeru?" That, on the other hand. Was a much simpler inquiry.

"Nope, he was with the Professor and Her Highness most of the time. Only saw glimpses of him."

"Then you did see him!" Class rep whirled around, a little upset for no reason.

"If that's what you meant, then yeah. I see him at least one a week. On the television." Some time passed before a slightly embarrassed Class rep spoke again.

"I guess you're right. Sorry for that." She sure was apologizing a lot for a tsundere, kind of unusual in many ways.

"Well, that's not totally true either. I spoke with him once, personally." Class rep took some time to react. Once she did, she still kept her mouth closed to let my next line flow out.

"Here, he gave this to me."

"…This is…" The same wooden container returned its content to the rightful owner.

"They're your glasses, right?"

"…Yeah…" A sorrowful look was Class rep's aspect, she studied the glasses thoroughly before placing them back inside the case.

"They're yours now, again."

"Thanks, Takeru." Class rep was less than thrilled to pocket her old pair. And she was not at all interested in why her father had them in the first place.

"You… don't want to ask anything?"

"There is really nothing I can ask, is there? If I ask you about why the Prime Minister had my old glasses, would you answer?"

"Classified."

"There you go then." Class rep's train of thought was surprisingly simple.

"Welp, don't expect me to come up with anything." Nothing else popped into my head, so I just turned around to leave.

"…Thank you, Takeru. For everything." I didn't see Class rep's expression, but somehow I just know, she had this smile that surfaced from the bottom of her heart.

"Not a problem." Waving my hand behind me, I increased our distance with every step.

"These glasses… I won't need them anymore." I couldn't identify as to which pair she spoke about, but I knew that was only a symbol, and I was terrible in literature anyway.

 **Medical bay**

I strolled over the base and decided to visit the injured Tsukuyomi on impulse. For god knows why, it was another samurai that I ran into.

A golden opportunity has never been more obvious. Meiya sat on bench with her face down on her knees, kinda reminded me of the old Meiya when she fucked up my dinner. Eggshells are not edible, I don't care what the doctors say.

"BOO!" Seeing an unaware girl being upset fuelled my inner troll like no other.

"KYAA!" In a comical fashion, Meiya jumped out of the chair and banged her head hard on the concrete wall with a painfully loud thud.

"Owwwww!"

"Hehehe, idiot." After settling down, Meiya stared back at me with tear-filled puppy eyes.

"T-T-Takeru! That was exceptionally spiteful!"

"Then don't get caught off guard next time, you weren't even paying attention to your surroundings."

"Ahaa…" Her slow reaction prompted me to understand the cause of her depression.

"I… for me to show others such a crestfallen sight… I really am… an incapable being…" And right back to grieving she went.

"I won't say that, you did nothing wrong during the fighting. How can anyone blame you for this?" While comforting her, I sat down beside Meiya and casually wrapped my arm around her shoulder.

"That is because this must not be who I am! Others must not know of this weak side of me! There were expectations of me! And I let them all down…" I laughed a bit too loud at Meiya's absurd way of thinking.

"Are you… making fun of me…?"

"I was laughing at what you said, not what you did. It was just funny how thick-headed you are, that's all." With that, I smiled gracefully and patted Meiya's head in one smooth motion.

"I talked with Ayamine yesterday, along many other things; she was also blaming herself for acting out like that during the fighting. Would you accuse her for distracting you when we tried to evac?"

"Of course not! The fault was mine alone when I failed to react to the fluctuating situation!" Like in all my past, Meiya was too noble for her own good. I had to pull her away from such settings if she were to be someone that will always accompany me.

"So what? You messed up, no big deal. Just got to try again, right?"

"That…! Such matter cannot be solved so easily!" Watching her now, she behaved just like me after Marimo-chan got bit. Ah, the good old days of the dumbass Shirogane, god I hate myself as a kid.

"Huhuhu, that's correct. Every failure comes with a consequence, or that's what you wish to believe. However, the truth is that nobody is blaming you for your mistake which just lead to this self-pity going on here, I am wrong?" Meiya gave me a look of bewilderment and hidden anger this time around.

"…" Noticing that Meiya couldn't think of a comeback, I decided to try what I used on Ayamine on her.

"I'll blame you, Meiya. You clearly wasn't in the right state of mind after the negotiation broke down , you slow-wittiness was what put Tsukuyomi in the hospital today, happy now?"

"…That is not the issue here… I… I broke the promise we made together! Such a simple oath… and yet…" Damn, Meiya was such a masochist... probably not the right word to use here though.

"Yeah, guess you did do that. Let's discuss your punishment, then. What do you propose you do to make up for this?"

"Eh? I-I do not know… I was the one who failed you… please decide for me." Meiya always had two strings attached to her, normally her tie to the empire would be severed after the coup, but my gut feeling was telling me that wasn't the case.

"Well, how about this. When we talked last time, you promised your life to me. Now I'm demanding you as a person. Come hell or high water, you'll always be by my side. Never betray me, never let me down, never disobey me and never walk another path." She looked at me for a few seconds before becoming a bit outraged by my order.

"…Are you demanding my will!? I cannot submit myself like that!" And there we go, finally Meiya was back to her old self, relatively speaking.

"See? You have nothing else to offer me as of now. I'm still here, you're still here, if Tsukuyomi wake up with a better personality, we're golden."

"…I am still unsure…"

"Yuuhi freed you of your duty as a shadow for the empire, and I just freed you of any shackles I tied. Follow your own will, Meiya. You cannot be anyone else other than yourself." This time around, the eyes that gazed upon me had a sense of hope and wish attached to them.

"Takeru…"

"Mitsurugi Meiya, you are a member of the UN Army, the twin sister of our Grand Shogun and my irreplaceable partner in life. Your mistake during our fight will be your last, you live entirely for yourself now. Do not allow others to impel their views upon you, burn your life brilliantly until you breathe your last; with your everlasting friends by your side, that final second will not arrive anytime soon."

With tears of joy slowing leaking, Meiya threw herself into me. While being stable enough for us to remain on the chair was easy, I picked to 'accidentally' allow myself to be pushed down.

"Aggressive, aren't you?"

"I-i-idiot! This was not my intention!"

"Then let's hear what you really want to say." Then she spoke, without helping either of us back up. Meiya started talking when we were still on the floor, just like that.

"T-T-Takeru! M-my entire life has being nothing but a shade of my sister… s-so-so please stay with me…a-and teach me how to life for myself…!" Since I had no problem with Meiya anyway, what excuse she used didn't bother me one bit.

"Sure, if that's what you want. I'll be with you, anywhere and anytime." Hearing my acceptance painted Meiya's cheeks in red.

"Ahaaa… Takeru…!" Closing the gap between our mouths quickly, Meiya's warm, moist lips were virtually touching mine, virtually.

"Ahem! Meiya-sama, I am very glad to see you in good health." As a sudden rush of wind swiped to my side, Tsukuyomi stepped out from the recently opened doors with the most deadpan appearance I've seen yet.

"Ahhh… no, wait! T-t-this is merely…! I-I… it was only…!" Without as much as a twitching vein, Tsukuyomi very patiently waited for Meiya's answer.

"I'm interested too, Meiya. What were you gonna do?" Add that fuel to the flame, go me go.

"N-no! Do not misunderstand! I-I-I was o-only trying to…! …Excuse me!" Temporary reaching the speed of light, Meiya dashed away right from our sights.

"Huh. That was fun. How're you now, Tsukuyomi?" After the natural period of awkward silence for when a girl runs away before delivering a kiss, I tried an icebreaker with an injured Tsukuyomi.

"I am well enough. Let us never speak of this again."

"Yeah, yeah. That'll work." And so both of us forgot this event forever and ever.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Ayamine's room**

"So you're really okay with this, Kei-san?"

"Yeah, if it makes Takeru happy."

"Then let's work together! Takeru-chan would really appreciate that!"

"If you say so."

 **Hallway**

It was infrequent for Sumika to be by her own lonesome when traversing the base, she would normally be accompanied by Kasumi or Takeru for most of the time, or with her other friends who she would bump into.

Having nothing else she wished to do for that day, Sumika ran around the base looking for Takeru. Finally given up on searching for him normally, she quickly scanned the base with her esper ability which revealed Takeru's location to be around the Medical Bay. However, he wasn't on his own; Sumika also detected the presence of Meiya along with Tsukuyomi-san that was right next to him. So because Sumika was Sumika, she increased her steps to reach the destination faster to see what commotion was taking place.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Medical Bay**

Tsukuyomi sent me off with a refined nod before returning back to her room, flashing me a nice, juicy view of her ass thanks to the hospital gown. I instinctively wetted my lips when deliberating a way to tap that rear later in life.

"Ah! Takeru-chan! You're thinking about lewd stuff again, aren't you!?" A much loved, and yet annoying voice echoed loudly in the corridor.

"Absolutely, did you not see that butt? Perfection in flesh." I jokingly blew a kiss toward the closed door and helped myself off the floor.

"Moooou! Stop looking at other girls!"

"Even though we agreed I can do that?"

"Then stop thinking about dirty stuff with other girls!"

"We agreed I can do that too."

"…Tsk, can't win." She never could.

"Come here, I'll be nice to you too." I adjusted Sumika's irritated look under a second by giving her a warm kiss on her moist lips.

"Mnnnua… guess I'll forgive you, Takeru-chan."

"Good, cause the next one's gonna cost you."

"That's okay, Takeru-chan is cheap anyway."

"You… that was a good one, I'll admit." We both chuckled a bit at our back-and-forth insults.

"How is Tsukuyomi-san?"

"She should be fine, I knew she was just great when she interrupted me and Meiya." What a damn shame too.

"Oh yeah, I saw that. Meiya-san is getting really brave these days."

"Sure is, she— wait, you saw? The whole thing?" Sumika turned to give me two innocent nods.

"You are really nice to Meiya-san, you know? Like how you told her that she is free from you and stuff." We had this weird moment when Sumika changed her attitude and yet was still smiling cheerfully at the same time.

"Do you… want the same thing?" I never bothered to consider Sumika's feelings in depth; maybe that was another huge mistake on my part.

"Not really, I mean; Meiya-san and I are different people, right?"

"So you don't want to be free?" Sumika must have thought about this question long before I asked it, since she answered me back without the slightest hesitation.

"I want to be by your side, Takeru-chan. I will never betray you and never disobey you, I'll always follow your command and do whatever you want!" Sumika took a few steps in front of me and swung around, placing both of her small hands on my cheeks.

"Sumika… you are willing to go that far…? For me?"

"Of course! Takeru-chan is the only one I have! You're the only one that matters in my life! Without Takeru-chan, I wouldn't even be here right now… so I will be forever yours. Anything, I'll do anything for your sake!"

"Sumika… thank you… really, for everything." From the first day forward, Sumika was always with me; she never left, she never had any second thoughts. That strong will never once wavered through our endless journey in time.

"There's no need, Takeru-chan. You are more than I ever want." With that, another tender kiss was formed between two special lovers.

Sumika was always the same, a happy girl, a cheerful girl. She was a girl that never gave up, a girl that never left my side. From time to time, I seriously wonder for what reason have I earned the loyalty of such pure feelings, surely there was something else that deserves her allegiance more than a guy who couldn't even stay with the same girl. And not only Sumika, all other girls had dedicated their fruitful lives to a man like me. It just wasn't logical for there to be nobody that was better than me.

Fortunately, no such thing existed on this earth. I was an exotic being, no others mimicked my persona and no man copied my character. I have since came to term with that fate, if I owned the key to unlock such happiness, then what a fool would I be if I didn't use that tool for myself.

 **December 08, 2001**

 **PX**

My timing definitely could use some improvement.

"God… why…" The current time was three in the afternoon. I was alone in the PX, not even Kyozuka-oba-chan was present in the kitchen at this time. And obviously, without a chef there was no food to speak of.

"Ahha… I'm dying." I overslept by nine hours today since my team was off duty for the time being. And so now, my stomach was aching in pain due to the lack of nutrition provided.

My face laid down on the table, its hard exterior didn't help in relieving the stress of my abdomen. Nor did those complaints assist me in forgetting about my hunger.

"What are you doing, Shirogane? It is unsightly for an UN Eishi to be openly upset in public." The person that called me out was Tsukuyomi. Bringing my sight up and returning her glance, I noticed that her head was still covered in multiple layers of bandages. My first thought was to bring up Meiya's little incident yesterday, but being the better man that I was, the topic didn't resurface.

"Shouldn't you be back in the hospital, Tsukuyomi? Walking around with that head injury might cause further damage… to your personality." Still, some shots must be fired for the two of us to commune.

"You—!" Her menacing glare was deflected by the dead-fish gaze I shot back.

"Well, have a seat while you think of a comeback." After some intense seconds of trying to stare into my soul, Tsukuyomi surrendered to my blank-look and took the bench across from me.

"You did not answer my earlier question, what are you doing here?"

"You know, just starving and stuff." Tsukuyomi got a little confused before she understood my meaning.

"Then I take it that you have plenty of free time?" That was a little heartless, she could at least offered me some food or, I don't know, a personal service of sorts.

"Sure, nothing really going on here." Some more timed passed before Tsukuyomi abruptly stood up from her seat. She had this mixed look of gratitude and displeasure.

"1st Lt. Shirogane… thank you very much… for protecting Meiya-sama." To my personal amusement and a bit of surprise, the Honour Guard bowed her head in my direction, clearly displaying her appreciation to me for saving Meiya.

"Our objective lined up, that's all. I did not protect Meiya for you, Tsukuyomi. Although I will gladly accept your recognition."

"Is that so, then I shall take my leave here." Tsukuyomi unquestionably was about to ditch me after a mere thank you.

"Wait-wait. Are you just going to get up and go? At minimum give me something."

"What do you want?"

"Make me some food." I just spurt out the first thing on my mind.

"…Does it appear to you that I work as your personal maid?" Now that was a good joke, but I withheld my laughter for a chance at an actual meal.

"Well, I mean you were K.O.-ed when Meiya was about to be sliced like a salmon. But I saved her from all those bad America people, does that count for something?"

"Such insolence… very well, come with me." With that, Tsukuyomi walked out the door without as much as a peek back at me. I followed after her, looking forward to whatever dish she'll put together.

 **Yokohama Base, Imperial Royal Guard PX**

"Man, this place is small."

"There is no need for a huge diner when it will only serve four." Couldn't argue with sound logic, or with someone who is about to save my stomach, for that matter.

The Honour Guard cafeteria was small, but still had this very elegant feel to it. Instead of having rolls of branches like us common peasants, they enjoyed comfy chairs with a proper backrest and elaborate round tables that had a rotatable plate in the center. I remembered as a child, I loved spinning those things every my family went out to eat at a fancy restaurant. Messing with others as they were about to pick their food was always great fun, until I get kicked out for being a kid.

"Sit here, Shirogane. I will prepare your meal."

"Personally?"

"Is that not what you requested?" The last time I got to enjoy Tsukuyomi's cooking was decades ago, my mouth watered uncontrollably just thinking of such a feast.

"It is, please get going." Shooting me an irritated look on her way out, Tsukuyomi disappeared behind some counters.

—

"Here, enjoy your meal."

"Ohh… curry, haven't seen this in years." It was a plate of Japanese curry Tsukuyomi made for me. Just like the curry back in my world,; it was brown with rice, some carrots, potatoes and most importantly, the rice.

"Did you made this using synthetic material?"

"Yes, but I had modified them for better savouriness." Tsukuyomi sat down and studied me sluggishly while I dug into the food.

Such nostalgic favour, its texture was the best of what the current world could provide. With a taste that wasn't too sweet or too spicy, I relished the food faithfully made by Tsukuyomi. Well, it had as much dedication as Tsukuyomi was willing to spend on me, anyway.

"So, Tsukuyomi. How're you doing?"

"I have no reason to hold a conversation with you." Rejected so bad, but I wasn't about to give up.

"Come on, now. We have the same goals, right? Let's try and be friends."

"I also see no motive for me to befriend you. However, for this once I will entertain you." She smirked wryly like how I often do.

"Then some questions, if you don't mind."

"That all depends on what knowledge you seek to know."

"I'll just ask away. What's Meiya's position now?" My guess most likely would have been correct, but hearing it first-hand from a Royal Guard should set my theory in stone.

"…You understand you are asking me to divulge information regarding the current Shogunate and the structure of this Empire?" If Tsukuyomi kept using such vague words, someone's head will be smashed with a plate soon. And I knew my head wasn't on a list anywhere.

"Was I? Arra, just tell me anyway."

"The likes of you… very well, for this once I shall trust you, Shirogane Takeru; for Meiya-sama held even greater convection in you." The affection points I put into Meiya rewarded me out of the blue. Tsukuyomi briefly surveyed around the diner before leaning in close.

"With the current state of the government. Her Highness has yet to reach a conclusion regarding her decision to reform the government. However, the Emperor has given Her Highness his permission to dissolve the cabinet and her request to form a new party." Good news so far.

"As of now, the collapse of the American intelligence agency has caused their loss of power over the provisional government. Taking this chance before the election, Her Highness has temporary seized all authority over the Central Department, the top administrative agency of the Diet and all matters of state." I did like how Yuuhi started what should be called an 'absolute monarchy' the second she got in power.

"So Her Highness took all matters of national affairs? Just like that?"

"Yes. The details of Her Highness' method are unfamiliar to me as well." The old Yuuhi probably would never perform such an act, her belief in the good of people was just too strong. But now, Yuuhi should understand just how important power really is. She will not let me down as the Shogun, I still need her to perfect her role.

"So is Yuuh— Her Highness acting as the monarch over the newly founded sovereign state as of now?"

"That is correct." I chuckled quietly at the thought of Yuuhi evolving the country into a dictatorship.

"How about Meiya then, you still on her protective duty?" Tsukuyomi debated within herself as to whether she should reveal more detail to the situation.

"Yes. As of this moment, Meiya-sama's relation with Her Highness is still concealed from the public. And therefore I am still ordered to guard Meiya-sama at all times."

"That's good to hear." I scooped up some more rice and listened to Tsukuyomi's next line.

"However, the Americans have yet to salvage their crafts back to their homeland, which means Meiya-sama's identity could still be in danger." Now for the bad part of the update.

"Can we not stop their recovery?"

"No, while the CIA took full responsibility for their plot, the American government have yet to compensate for our losses. They still wish to reclaim the cost of their operation or at least retrieve any intelligence they may have gotten."

"That's… not so good. If they get their TSFs back, they could easily discover Meiya's identity." Scrapping up the last bits of food off my plate, I returned Tsukuyomi's serious look with my own.

"So while our position as of now is a beneficial one, another risk to our sovereignty could be on the horizon."

"America really wants us, huh? " As the Far-East Defence line, the dices in our hands had more value than any other country.

"Conflicts are unavoidable. There could be a time when Meiya-sama is no longer desirable for our state. And when that time comes, my position most likely will be altered."

"Is that inevitable?" In my heart, I already knew Meiya's worth had ran out for this nation, then again, I cared not for such business.

"Indeed, so it is only natural for me to ask this of you as her squad leader. 1st Lt. Shirogane Takeru, do not let down the trust both I and Her Highness have placed in you."

"Of course, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. I will protect all members of my team without fail, for this goal is what my mind is set on from the very beginning."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Here, Shirogane. Congratulations to your victory."

"To our victory, Yuuko-sensei." Sensei passed me a wine cup which I gladly accepted. For some reason, it was still sake that we drank together no matter victory or defeat.

"Huhuhu… But still, the president must be in so such a mess right now."

"You think if he got all the letters of resignations in a pool, right? Someone definitely can swim in that." We were drowning in expensive alcohol to celebrate our triumph over Alternative V.

"If you add in all their tears, I'm sure they'll manage." I laughed out loud at Yuuhi-sensei's excellent joke.

We won. Alternative V was completely cancelled after the CIA was busted for their involvement in the 12/5 incident by Yuuhi.

She announced the entire incident after arriving at Tokyo yesterday. At first, many found her tale to be ridiculous and only as an attack on America, but evidence was still evidence. The plot she unveiled was a giant scheme that linked all the way up to the vice-president of the United States.

Most of the Alternative V conspirators had initially scheduled for this coup to knock down both the Shogun and the Imperial Diet so their influence within Sendai can find a way to sabotage Yokohama and Alternative IV. That plan backfired magnificently when I convinced Yuuhi to take over the Diet directly. The Shogun, together with Prime Minister Sakaki found most of their agents inside the provisional government and along with the plans form the coup, exposed everything on the international field.

Thanks to that, their leverage over the government disappeared overnight. With Sendai pretty much emptied of all American control. Yuuhi and Class rep's old man quickly established a much clearer Imperial Diet and Sendai. Eventually, anyway.

"Here, Shirogane. Another cup."

"And to you as well, sensei." We proposed our toast and cheered for a future without Operation Babylon.

"Now that Alternative V is gone, all of the UN's funding for the project comes my way. Tell me anything you want, Shirogane. I'm pretty sure I can buy anything money can buy."

"I will ring you up when the time comes, sensei."

The CIA was running around like a headless chicken, trying to point their fingers at another department when they were the only existing target. The shitstorm blew all over America, from whoever directed the CIA full blasted to the Vice-president. So that means many Americans have lots of chances at new employment options over the next couple of weeks.

"Oh, yeah. Didn't you bring back an F-22A or something? The head mechanic was trying to contact me earlier about that."

"Yeah, but not exactly. A customized YF-23 Black Widow II. That machine is first-class. Its jump unit, the weapon attachments, manoeuvrability and even the camouflage is state-of-the-art thanks to Uncle Sam's infinite back pocket."

"You really like that unit, huh?"

"Sensei, please. I sexually identify as Third generation frames. And what's better is that they can't even ask us for their toy back. Because, technically it wasn't even there." We laughed some more and drained another toast.

The American Army, on the other hand, actually was branded as heroes who helped the Shogun together with us the UN, the Imperials and the Honour Guards. Credit goes to Yuuhi's very accurate speech she presented that left no room for misinterpretation. The CIA equals bad, the American Army equals good. Many people still despised the rebels for obvious reasons, but Yuuhi also made it distinct that they were tricked and the first shot wasn't fired by the insurgents.

"Since we're on this topic and since you said we have the funding now. I need the blueprints for an Yf-23 Black Widow II and all of its weapon systems."

"That is one of the most ridiculous demands I have ever heard, Shirogane. You are asking the Americans to handover their national treasure, you know?" That didn't change the fact that I still required the sketch for the TSFs and weapons. Without those, my new toy wouldn't last longer than a rundown pickup truck.

"Well, technically I'm not asking America. I'm asking Northrock or McDaell Doglam to pass over whatever plans they could salvage when the YF-23 got cancelled back in 1990. From what I heard, one of the head developers for YF-23 transferred from Northrock to Boening; but if Doglam also got the data I'll need, then whichever one of the companies is fine."

"You're seriously thinking about using that frame, then? I don't know how people will take to the fact that an UN Eishi will be piloting an America 3rd generation fighter. Not to mention that it's a completely unknown unit." The opinions of others were microscopic on my list of concerns.

"I don't care about what the higher ups think. We're in a pretty invincible spot right now thanks to Alternative V's crash and burn. I want that unit to be functional because it's better than Type-94s. And I want the best toys available to me."

"Why do you want their blueprint anyway? Can our guys just reverse engineer what you brought along?" That was my first idea, but it was sadly unrealistic.

"Nope, that'll take too long. I am many things, but patience is not one of them."

"…I don't know, that machine is customized, right? I don't know if the weapon system and armoury are compatible with the main frame." That concern failed to pass my mind.

"Ah, shit. I forgot about that, can you get the mechanic dudes to check it out for me? The weapon system should work but the attachments might not."

"Sure, I'll take a look at its specs and cross-reference it with our database on Third-gen TSFs."

"Do we have data on all TSFs? I mean, mine is a classified unit." To answer my question, Yuuko-sensei first had to smug up her expression and look down on me.

"Please, there is nothing I can't get with a little money and influence. And I have a lot of both as of now."

"If you say so, sensei. I'll leave this matter with you."

"What now, Shirogane? What do you have on your calendar?"

"Not much, really. The next time we see any action won't be for a while. A good time to relax and enjoy the ride." I flipped through my memories to spot any details that I left out. None could be found at this time.

—

Time passed swiftly without our realization, the empty bottles were the only proof that we spent many hours enjoying each other's company.

"Alright, sensei. It's been fun, but I gotta get back to my room." I placed my cup carefully and tried to bail out before the beverage gets the better of me.

"Shiroganeee! What's your hurry? We still have a long night ahead of us!" Yuuko-sensei was obviously drunk. For someone who kept such high quality liquor in her room, she was unexpectedly intolerable to alcohol. Or maybe my tolerance was just too high for anyone else to compete.

"Yuuko-sensei, I really need to go or Sumika and Kasumi will pick on my ass tomorrow."

"It's fineeeeee, Shiroganeee. I'll make sure they don't bother yoooou, professor's orders!" Yuuko-sensei then very suggestively pulled down her collar.

"…Yuuko, you saying what I think you're saying? I still need to get up early next day." Her hidden meaning wasn't very difficult to distinguish.

"Come on, Shirogane… Your beautiful sensei awaits you. I'll make sure to wake you tomorrow, personally. Huuiiii…" Normally, as a logical man. I would have clearly escaped before any flags could show result. Let's just say that the sake was a bit stronger than I thought it would be.

"Hummm… Alright. But you sure you'll still be able to move tomorrow?" I went over and locked the door before the night started.

 **Author's note**

I really thought I would have to delay this chapter this time if it wasn't for my editor guy, so shout out right away to chad001. Thanks for always reading a crappy vision of my story so others don't have to do the same.

I realized that I never really explained the YF-23 thingy, this is kinda unprofessional for me to talk about a plot point in the AN, but it's not like I am getting paid for writing this anyway. (No, still don't own Muv-Luv. I wish.)

For the uninformed, there was an American program in mid-1980's to upgrade from the F-15 Eagle series to a new third generation fighter called the ATSF program. So in 1990, the final competition was between the YF-22, the Raptor and the YF-23, the Black Widow II. After 4 years of testing, both machines had similar stealth and target finding capability which meant the battle was down to CQC. The YF-23 won more matches because it had a sword and could move faster, it also killed more BETA in simulations.

Nevertheless, America being America picked the Raptor over the Black Widow for its high fuel efficiency, cheaper building cost and longer operation time. This choice was also probably swayed by America's habit of G-bombing the shit out of everything, so there you go.

So the YF-23 got scrapped and the American Army ran with the F-22A Raptor instead. Now it's for you to decide which machine is better, but in the hands of BASED Nippon, fast movement and a sword win against halls of bullets any day. Now the lecture is over, you can find much more information on the Muv-Luv Wikia page but I know all of you are lazy so that's why I went over it.

All jokes aside, thank you again for reading another chapter of my fic. I'm really happy for all the support I have gotten over only about three month since I first posted this. We're at 4700 views right now and it gets a healthy increase every day, you guys are quite awesome for always reading this crazy rambling of mine.

Thank you very much, everyone.

BETA done by… wait, I talked about you already, get out of here.


	18. Achieving and planning goals

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 09, 2001**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Emmuuum… Yuukooo… pleasssee… get off me." Like I said, couldn't move.

"Shirogneeee… you freaking savage…" A great way to start our morning.

"At least it was enjoyable, right?"

"…Yeah… I never thought someone could dominate me… by this much." What transpired that night was a one-sided massacre.

"Then would you please get up now, Yuuko-sensei?" Our current position did not represent our relationship status.

"Aahahh… What time is it?"

"Like… eight, or something? How long did we actually sleep for?" The alcohol-rich night wasn't the best time for resting.

"…It's… eight fourteen. Good guess." Yuuko-sensei somehow perceived the time while still laying above me.

"Then please get off, Yuuko-sensei! I'm already late for roll-call!" Sensei only made a few muffled noises.

"…Did you find Takeru-san in the PX?" A terribly unwelcoming voice reached my ears through the door.

"…No, this is the only place left. I can also feel them here." My attendants had finally isolated the last possible location.

"Sensei! Sensei! Please get up!" As Sumika knocked on the doors, Yuuko-sensei was deeper in her nap than earlier, somehow.

"Takeru-channn! Yuuko-senseiiii! Are you in there?" Sumika's relentless banging was not interested in ceasing anytime soon.

"What should we do, Sumika-san?"

"They're definitely in here, I trust my sense! It's a bit rude, but… I will have to unlock this door by force!" That woman had disregarded the meaning of a locked door her whole life, and she certainly wasn't going to change right there.

"Sensei! Come on, get up!"

"Muuun… don't worry, Shirogane… it's fine…" I was about to be so screwed, and not in the good way either.

"Alright! Let's go in and find Takeru— Huh? Meiya-san? Morning!"

"Good morning, Sumika. Good morning Kasumi." Meiya just saved my dumbass for the thousandth time.

"Good morning, Meiya-san."

"Why have you two gathered in front of the professor's office?"

"We're looking for Takeru-chan and this is the last place we haven't search yet!" If Meiya was a true friend, she would tell my escorts not to enter the office without permission.

"Sumika, Kasumi. You should not enter the Professor's office without her consent." Meiya was the best girl.

"However, it is suspicious that his presence cannot be perceived anywhere else…"

"I know, right? Takeru-chan is definitely in here!" Nevermind, Meiya was like the Benedict Arnold of my time. That merciless betrayal stabbed me right in the feels.

"Yuuko-sensei, don't blame me for this." I flipped sensei off the couch. She was surprisingly light in contrast to her body size, but I already knew that long time ago.

"Agrh! Shirogane! Why did you do that?"

"Look, Yuuko. There is a mob gathering outside and I prefer not to be the subject of their fury. So let's just put on our clothes and pretend we were doing professional shit, alright?" I donned my uniform without delay. Yuuko-sensei also began moving to collect her garments as well.

"Should we enter then, Sumika?"

"Takeru-chan! Are you here…?" Sumika's dumb face was frozen with an aspect of disbelief.

"Huh? Sumika, what is the matter? Is Takeru here or not…"

"Takeru-san… why?" I felt that my innocence could be faked if Yuuko-sensei dressed herself fully, instead of showing off her body in her underwear. She was looking for her own uniform while pacing around the room with minimal clothing.

"Look… we were… like… talking about science stuff… right…? And then, sensei was talking about how her… I don't know, I got nothing for this. Yuuko-sensei, you wanna try?" I passed the ball of excuse and blame to sensei, who finally found her attire.

"Huh…? Ah, we were just sharing a room for the night."

"Yuuko! Why you got to… fucking fuck me." I was forced to submit to my fate.

"Taaaaakeeeeruuu-channnnn…" Sumika's super-duper disappointed stare brought me no sense of shame.

"…What!?"

"Takeru-chan is such a man-slut. Unbelievable!" I was about to burst out laughing at her terrible use of words.

"It's not called that! I'm more of a playboy! And I don't want to hear this from you, Slutmika!" This is Command Center, shots fired. I repeat, shots have been fired.

"AAAhaa! THAT'S SOOOOO MEANNN!"

"Not if it's the truth! Here, see!?" I waved a fistful of Yen right in her face that I pulled from my 4th-dimensional pocket.

"You're holding NOTHING!"

"Ah, I forgot idiots can't see my cash."

"AHHHHA! Takeru-chan! I hate you!"

"Does it look like I care? Why don't you—"

"What… is happening now, Takeru?" It was at this moment that I realized what a huge fuckup this argument had been. Meiya crudely stumbled backwards until she stabilized herself on the wall, a totally shocked expression over her face.

"Emm… Meiya… listen—"

"Ah… I understand… please… excuse me."

"Meiya!" My shout was too late to reach the girl that wasn't informed about my personality when it came to females. Meiya turned and walked as fast as she could without breaking into a run.

"…Takeru-chan… it can't be that… you didn't tell her, did you?"

"Ahha… shit!" I was speechless at my own stupidity. Sumika's previous anger disappeared, leaving no trace behind of our quarrel.

"I'll go talk with her, Takeru-chan."

"Sumika… thank you, please go do that." Sumika led Kasumi by her hand and left me alone in Yuuko-sensei's office.

"Shirogane… sorry about that." Another rarity took place in the shape of Yuuko-sensei's apology.

"It's fine, sensei. I never deserved girls like them anyway. They might be better off without me holding them back."

"Ahhaa… you teenagers should have a lot of drama going on these days."

"Yuuko-sensei, no! You're still the one that started it! Don't go relaxing right afterwards!" Sensei also had no sense of guilt built in.

"Hehe, I did apologize, did I not? You just can't seem to handle this many girls surrounding you."

"That's nowhere near the truth, you should know that the most I did at once was seven, but now is not the time for a story. Today's December 9, right? Got the squad's promotion today." Normally, we all will get promoted to Second Lieutenant for our achievement during the coup. Maybe I'll get another rank up from this.

"True, you should head to the auditorium now. Have some faith in Kagami, she'll watch your back."

"I know, I know she will."

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Rooftop**

"Meiya-san, this is normally Kei-san's territory, you know?" The girl that Sumika was speaking to turned around. Her face showed no emotion, but Sumika could see the leftover tear marks that represented her sadness.

"Is that so? I must apologize to Ayamine at a later date."

"That's silly, it's not like she owns the roof or anything."

"It is quite funny. Your speech does sound like Takeru's from time to time." Meiya concluded the small talk by bringing up the name of the one man that was the target for both girls' passion.

"Haha… We have been together for a long time, after all."

"…I realized, I must apologize for stepping in the way then." Sumika inadvertently harmed Meiya without grasping it herself.

"No, no! It's not like that. I know that Takeru-chan loves you just as much." Sumika recognized better than anyone what Takeru had went through, but she also understood that she only knew so little compared to himself.

"There is no reason to lie, Sumika. I… I just need some time… to overcome this." The tears had a habit of leaking out of Meiya's eyes without consent these days.

"It's not true. He said you're his partner, right? And I know that he meant every word of his confession."

"What… is that what he said?" Seeing Meiya play dumb was unsettling enough for Sumika to close the distance between herself and her old rival in love.

"You might not know this, but… this isn't Takeru-chan's first time meeting you, nor mine or Kasumi-chan's first. We have been here for a long time, it's not as long as Takeru-chan's first time. But we can understand his suffering to some degree."

"He also told me something similar. How much… has that man suffered before now?" Meiya recalled the first time Takeru's heart opened to her, and she gave him the courage to continue his journey.

"I don't know, I don't think we can truly understand him as long as he keeps on fighting. But that's okay, isn't it…? Now that I remembered, I never thanked you for helping Takeru-chan when he was wavering, during the second night." Sumika lightly bowed her head to Meiya.

"It… it was my duty to assist a squad mate in need…"

"But then he changed, didn't he? He became more than a member on your team. Meiya-san, I know that you love him as well. Just like how he loved you through all this time." Meiya couldn't deny it.

Ever since that night, she had strange dreams, or memories of another time and a different place, a different world. There were locations that she never seen before, many things that made no sense to her within the dreams. Nevertheless, those memories all had one resemblance; they all included Takeru, she was always with him. She was so happy, being by his side.

"I… I don't know… I cannot tell the reason for my own feelings. It felt as if it is my destiny to meet that man, to fall in love with him…"

"I think that Takeru-chan thinks the same thing. I'm sorry that I can't tell you everything because of what could happen. But even so, I'm sure that Takeru-chan loves you just as much as you do."

"But still… do you not hold the same affection for him as well? I cannot come between the two of you who have been together for much longer than me." The reason for Meiya's withdraw was a solid one.

"That is also not true. The first person he ever picked was you. I'm glad to be with him through his hardships. But Takeru-chan's feeling for you maybe even stronger than what he feels about me." Within her heart, Sumika was insecure about Takeru's favourite.

"This cannot be, Sumika! You are the one that accompanied him through all this time."

"Then we are even, right? We both love him and he loves us back equally."

"However… he must choose between the two of us."

"Is that what you want, Meiya-san? Because I'm fine with sharing him." Sumika announced her conclusion which shocked Meiya that she would be this generous.

"That is absurd! I-I…"

"Do you wish him for only yourself? Not like there is anything wrong with that. It is how things are supposed to be, normally." In a peaceful world where only ordinary events took place. The girls wouldn't receive their chance to have the same man.

"I… I cannot be selfish for such a reason. And I was asked to stop neglecting my own wellbeing…" Meiya came to her answer after some minutes of silence.

"Then you agree?"

"Sumika, are you sure it is okay for him to accept my feelings as well?"

"Of course! I'm sure that Takeru-chan would be much happier if his love can reach you!"

"I mean you, Sumika. Are you sure that you are fine with not having him to yourself?" The question caused Sumika some hesitation. But it was nothing that she hadn't solved before.

"I guess it would be the best for me if Takeru-chan would only look at me. But like you said, Meiya-san, we can't be selfish like this. If we can make him happier with the two of us, then there wouldn't be anything for us to regret about, right?" Sumika viewed Takeru's happiness as more important than her own, or perhaps his joy was her happiness as well.

"Sumika… I am sure that if it was not for this. We would have been great friends."

"That's not right. Aren't we already great friends?"

"…Yeah. Yeah, I suppose we are."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Yokohama Base, the Auditorium.**

This place never changes. With the lines already drawn, why didn't they just add some hoops for basketball here? It would been a great opportunity— nevermind. The image of Sumika's wounded body resurfaced in my mind. Her arm, the arm that got bent at an impossible angle… and the blood… it was everywhere…it dyed her yellow ribbon and her attires with the bright red of her gore…

"Takeru-san…? Takeru-san!?"

"Huh…? Ah, Tama… thanks, saved me from some bad memories right there." I couldn't believe I was still having episodes about the death of my friends when I should have seen it many times with many different methods… like the time when Tama got chomped in half… or when she got eaten, over and over again…

"Hey, Takeru! Can you hear us?"

"Aaahh…! Holy crap, what're we talking about, Class rep?" I needed to stop being such a traumatized bitch and recalling old times.

"You are really… we're talking about why they summoned us here, First Lieutenant."

"Squad leader… incompetent." Ayamine was just showering me in praises.

"That's nice, Ayamine. Your squad leader may just feel the need to order ten klicks from you later."

"Takeru, best team leader ever." This girl could change her mood at the drop of a hat.

"Anyway, why have we been called here? Takeru, do you know?"

"Yeah, but this is a surprise so I'll not tell for now. Don't worry, it's nothing bad." The team will be overjoyed once they realize the promotion that will be taking place soon.

"Although, we're missing a lot of people, aren't we?" Tama noticed the four members of my squad that hadn't attended.

"I'm here!" Mikoto made an energetic entry.

"Yoroi-san!"

"…You came back."

"It's good to see you, Yoroi." We all gave her a warm welcome, having Mikoto amongst our ranks once more was surely worth celebration.

"Welcome back, Mikoto."

"Thanks everyone! It was uncomfortable in the cell they put me in, but nothing ended up happening so I got released." The MPs kept her even though Yoroi Sakon should have Yuuhi's backing. Guess that's just how things operate with those guys.

"Now we're only missing Meiya-san and Sumika-san!"

"Wait, Kasumi is here?"

"I'm right here, Takeru-san." I literally didn't notice the bunny girl hidden behind her taller teammates.

"Oh, hey Kasumi."

"Hello, Takeru-san."

"Takeru-chan! Apologize to Kasumi-chan now!" Sumika barged into the room and made a scene without delay.

"Shut up, woman. I'm not going to just because you told me to do it."

"Still, Takeru. That must be quite insulting to Kasumi. You failed to acknowledge her until after she called for your attention." Meiya was the last member of my team to gather.

"…Meiya… You okay now?"

"Of course… I can comprehend your justification. We shall discuss this another time, now is not a good occasion for our topic." I found Meiya's reasoning to be very acceptable. Our squad stood around and chitchatted until Marino-chan and the General made themselves seen.

"—Attention!"

"—Squad, form up!" The four actual cadets lined themselves in front of the stage. Marino-chan signalled for me and my escorts to approach her.

"Lieutenants. Please observe the squad's graduation." We couldn't graduate again for obvious reasons. The three of us lined up besides Marino-chan as the instructors of the 207th squad.

"Salute General Radhabinod!" They performed as ordered. Some were a bit unsettled while others were oblivious to the impending event.

"—at ease! I know this is rather sudden, but we will now carry out the graduation ceremony for the 207th Eishi Cadet Squadron of the UN 11th Pacific Army's Yokohama Base Eishi Training School. —the base CO will begin the ceremony!" Interestingly enough, they somehow dragged Capt. Isumi into all this. She was the one who announced the intention of the summoning.

"—Attention!" I called one last time before the General started his speech.

"At ease… it is worthy of celebration when cadets complete their training and earn the right to be commissioned. Normally, we would do just that for your graduation… but given recent events, we must allow the Japanese people time to mourn." The lecture by General Radhabinod was on the topics of strength, power and courage. To orate an idea to the next generation of Eishis sounded easy on paper, but the General was a man who practiced his preaching with all his might.

"Young cadets of Eishi Training Squadron 207. I am convinced that you all believe in the same things we do." Our objective never changed to this day, and it will never change as our ambitious journey for a tomorrow when this earth will once again greet peace continues.

"…Look at your hands. What will you grasp with those hands? What will you protect with those hands? Clench your fists. What will you destroy with those fists? What will you defeat with those fists?" Our answer may differ from one another, however our hearts will never sway. The solution could vary between person to person, but there will ever be only one end that we strive for.

"Finally… although it is very exceptional… We were sent a message in time with your commissioning. Take to heart this congratulatory letter from the Grand Shogun of the Japanese Empire, Her Highness Koubuin Yuuhi." My squad was taken aback that Yuuhi would address them personally with a letter.

"Your recent labours have been truly arduous. I was glad for the opportunity to know firsthand the strong wills of those young men and women who sought to correct my mistakes…" Yuuhi's message didn't fluctuate too much from what I remembered. She grieved for those that lost their lives protecting this land. It was just like how she was, her hope in us and our power didn't show signs of fading away.

"I earnestly wish that you all manage to walk down the right path. And my heart will forever be with you all."

The sermon on the stage was brought to an end with the General's final words about our contribution the saving Yuuhi was a major cause for the promotion.

"—Attention! Salute general Radhabinod!"

"I will now give you your Eishi insignia." Capt. Isumi followed the General and handed out the emblems of an Eishi for my team.

"Cadet Sakaki Chizuru!"

"Sir!" The General walked over to Class rep. Their eye communication was enough to deliver any message.

"As of now, you are a UN Army Eishi… Congratulations, Second Lieutenant.

"Thank you, sir." The Salute was delivered and the General progressed until the cadets were finally given the right to stand on the battlefield as true comrades in arms.

—

"—that concludes the graduation ceremony for the 207th Eishi Cadet Squadron of the UN 11th Pacific Army's Yokohama Base Eishi Training School." Capt. Isumi ended the formality for my squad.

"The next event is the promotion of the Special Task Force A-01 temporary squadron! —the base CO will begin the ceremony! —Attention!" Us time-travellers also got our share of glory. We formed a single file off to the side of the auditorium and saluted the General.

"At ease… I do not believe it is necessary for me to recap the duties that you all dedicated your life on. I can only show the gratitude as the commander of Yokohama Base and a member of the human race. The path ahead may be even more precipitous and strenuous than what you have left behind. But I trust that will not stop those who carries our hope for tomorrow upon their backs and those who endeavour to conquer such challenges."

"—Attention! Salute General Radhabinod!" A great burden had been place upon us once more. My failures before this time will only motivate me to push forward without leaving behind any regrets.

"First Lieutenant Shirogane Takeru!"

"Sir!"

"As of now, you are a Captain of the UN Army… congratulations."

"Thank you, sir." The title of a Captain was a stepping stone for me to construct the future of mankind. There was no reason to stop here, my path was a path that stretched to infinity, forever pursuing the road that will lead us to victory.

"Second Lieutenant Yashiro Kasumi!"

"Sir."

"As of now, you are a First Lieutenant of the UN Army… Congratulations."

"Thank you, sir." Even if Kasumi didn't show any emotions above her features, I still concluded that she was delighted to receive the power necessary to further protect my back.

"Second Lieutenant Kagami Sumika!"

"Sir!" The sentiment that engrossed Sumika was much easier to guess, her comical happy smile from ear to ear told her mood just fine.

"As of now, you are a First Lieutenant of the UN Army… Congratulations."

"Thank you, sir!" And they stared at each other for a hilarious few seconds.

"…I understand your joy, First Lieutenant. But you're supposed to salute now." In her blissful moment, Sumika forgot her manners as part of the army.

"A-aha… S-sir! Excuse me! Sir!" My best poker face almost cracked under Sumika's display of slow-wittedness.

"—Attention! Salute General Radhabinod!" Isumi was just there, doing her whole Captain thing.

"…Do your very best. The future of our world depends on you." We will change it, no matter what obstruction stands in our way.

"That concludes both ceremonies!"

"—Thank you very much!" My team showed their gratitude from the bottom of their hearts.

"Your afternoon schedule is as follows. Assemble in the No. 7 Briefing Room at 13:00 hours. Your new unit assignments, means of procuring new uniforms. And other logistical details will be provided there— that is all." Marimo-chan and the other officers left to leave the newly promoted members some time alone. I did the same with my escorts, but we only excused ourselves to the side of the gym.

The girls stood in a badly formed circle and showered in the glory of victory, it was a paramount moment for them all, finally achieving success after month of hardship.

—

"Takeru, Sumika, Kasumi… your guidance to our squadron has been a gift that I have no method of repaying you." Meiya took the first opportunity to express her gratitude.

"Takeru… thank you. Kasumi and Sumika as well. Your enlistment helped us reach where we're today." With a formal bow, Class rep showed her appreciation.

"Takeru-sannnn…! Kasumi-sannn…! And Sumika-sannn…! Miki… Miki is very thankful for all that you have done for us!" Tama cried tears of joy for our assistance.

"I can't believe how sudden this is… but Takeru, Sumika-san and Kasumi-san… Thanks for everything. I really mean it!" A Mikoto with tears hanging on her eyes reached out for my escorts' hands.

"…The truth is… I'm very grateful for what you all have done… you all taught me so much…" The few words spoken by Ayamine were enough for her feelings to reach me.

"Heh, I don't accept bribes, you know…?" I only joked to avoid the oversensitive mood, since I was not that skilled in dealing with these kinds of moments without losing my cool.

"Everyone did very good."

"I'm also very happy to have worked with all of you! Let's continue to be good friends and help each other!" They weren't the only ones to rejoice over our graduation and promotion. We fought so hard, after all. It was inevitable to feel such pride and indulgence over our success.

"Captain Takeru…! Thank you very much…!" The old cadets lined up one more time and saluted to me as one. Their shout of gratefulness stirred my long frozen sentiments.

"You… girls… your feelings are received in full… I will always… always be here with you all so… let's work even harder for the future!"

"Yes, sir! Captain Takeru!" I was truly happy that the only trail for me still had its moments of solace and merriment.

—

The one waiting for us outside was Marino-chan, the former instructor of my squad.

"Sgt. Jinguuji… You have done a great deal for all of us."

"Second Lieutenant, congratulations on your promotion! I pray that you may find fortune on the battlefield!"

—

Marimo-chan complimented everyone for their qualification of the rank Second Lieutenant. It was still somewhat uncomfortable for our Drill Sergeant to speak so formally now that the team outranked her in an instant. One by one, the members of the now retired training squad showed their indebtedness. Marimo-chan could only reply properly due to the rank gap that was present.

"Sgt. Jinguuji, I thank you for your guidance of the 207th squad. Without you, they might not have reach the achievement they gained today."

"Thank you, Sgt. Jinguuji."

"Jinguuji-sense— Sgt. Jinguuji! Thank you very much!" Until the very end, it was Marimo-chan that raised the crew to their current standard. We could only take so much credit for her work.

"I am honoured, sirs. However, it was your exceptional supervision that led the squad to where they are today. I have done little of importance."

"The Army's manners can be a real pain in the ass, huh? Marimo-chan, you were the mentor of this squad until the 12/5. You have no reason to push away your accomplishment. I know that the rules and regulations have to be followed. But the crew must also want to hear you true opinion." Marimo-chan considered my point carefully. Likewise, she must wished to speak with the team without the forced stiffness.

"Everyone! Sgt. Jinguuji would like a final word with you all!" I wasn't patient enough to wait this long for her decision.

"Eh…? Shirogane— Captain!"

"Come on now, they're making their way back here. You'll look quite foolish if you don't say something fast." The girls returned and waited for Marimo-chan is last address.

"…Second Lieutenants, it may be disrespectful for me to speak to you all like this, however… you have improved so much since when we first met. It was your dedication and willpower that led you all to your attainment as Second Lieutenants today. Like the General said, the battlefield is an unforgiving place. But… as your former instructor, I am very proud to know that this squad will never falter under the threat of the enemy… you all have gained the strength to defeat the enemy of mankind. And I know you will use it wisely to protect this planet."

"Sgt. Jinguuji… thank you very much for your instruction!" In accordance to one another. The team all yelled their absolute gratitude to their teacher throughout all this time.

 **Briefing Room**

"And this is it. Your new Type-C uniforms are going to be late. But everything else is ready for you." I was getting my squad an overview for the next step in their career.

"So this'll finally be the last day of these cadet uniforms. We've even gotten our white Fortified Suits replaced already." Starting with Mikoto, they chatted about their excitement and nostalgia for both the old and the new.

"—and now we move onto your new assignments." I interrupted their discussion on the meaningless of gender roles in combat.

"Very unfortunately, all you girls are stuck with me here, your old squad leader. So go ahead and let out your irritation and bitterness. Because I won't take that crap once we are out there." They only giggled at my ill-tasted joke. Their untainted smiles assured me of my favour with these girls who mattered more than this world.

"We will be joining the Special Task Force Unit A-01, under the direct control of the Yokohama Base commanders. But mostly just the Vice-Commander, as she is the one that formed the Task Force to begin with. It used to be an entire wing, but then everybody died so we're down to a squad… RIP." It was a bit moody around the room. The girls knew without me saying that the survival rate for the Special Task Force was nothing to write home about.

"Anyway, the other active company, the 9th Squadron, also known as Isumi's Valkyries is currently away doing a mission. They call themselves the Valkyries because it's a chick party over there. No dudes allowed." Some snickers from below me travelled to my ears.

"But that's not all. We'll be forming our own squadron under my personal command. Since it pisses me off to take orders from others and I don't want to ruin the great Yuri atmospheres going on over there." I was shot some doubtful glares which were all properly reflected.

"Our own Squadron?! Isn't that like, really awesome and stuff!?" Mikoto nailed that point head-on.

"Absolutely, we're super cool and stuff. I had a long talk with the professor for this, she was going to just chuck us in with team Scissoring but I said no."

"Nice, I see what you did there." Ayamine almost jumped for joy, some other girls blushed bright red at my implication while the flats were clueless, all was normal with that sense.

"Takeru-chan is really just a kid… urrggg." I made another mental note to get Sumika in on some of that action later, who will be lucky enough to be her partner was still up for grabs.

"In any case, I will announce the founding of the 13th squadron of the Special Task Force, the eight of us will be known as the Archangel squadron!" The callsign was just a name I pulled out of a hat. At that time, I had no clue as to how people will see us from that point onwards.

"Ohhh, such a cool name!"

"It's like we're going to save everybody!" I was in no mood to discuss the origin of this somewhat childish name.

"The Captain will be me, second-in-command is Sumika or Kasumi, whoever is available at the time. After that, Class rep takes over command if we all happen to be unavailable. That's all, we clear?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Alright, alright. But now that the fun part is over, we do have to talk about actual military stuff. There'll be an evaluation exercise coming up soon. This was called by Professor Kouzuki but was postponed because the coup."

"The exercise is mainly for showing off the XM3, but we can also use this as a debut for us as Archangel Squad. All of your Shiranuis have already arrived but we shouldn't use them since they're too advanced for our opponents. Our options left are Gekishins and Fubukis, so the choice here is obvious…" The explanation ended once all important points were covered.

"And the final thing before we dismiss. Here, come and grab one each." I dropped some paper and envelopes on the first desk in front of me.

"What are these for, Takeru?"

"They're to write down what you wish for Christmas… that's not true. They're for writing your will." It suddenly got very difficult to break the ominous mood that befell the room.

"We'll be in constant combat from now on, won't we?"

"Sorry, Class rep. We didn't sign up to be community managers." It was a hard fact, but the most essential reality.

"It is our duty to prepare for the worst possibility. As soldiers, we must risk our lives to defend what matters to us the most. And death closely follows those whose obligation is to bring protection to the ones that cannot defend themselves. However, I have no plan of dying, as I also have the duty to continue living."

"Meiya…" She was still willing to live for me, even after what I hid from her.

"Meiya-san… that's right! We'll defend what is important to us and live!"

"Yeah! And we'll all make it until the end!"

"No one… can die until then." It was heart-warming to see the team filled with energy and hope.

"Heh… Alright! That's it for today! A-01 13th squad, Archangels, dismiss!"

"Yes, sir!"

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Hey, Captain. Liking your new rank?"

"Always good to level up, sensei. Thanks for the recommendation." Yuuko-sensei was the first one to advocate for me and my escorts' promotion. My own achievement during the coup also was a leading cause for my status.

"Huhu, then what do you want today?"

"It's about the XM3 trial you set up, what are you planning on doing for this? The BETA you got from Niigata… will be used here, right?" There was no need to beat around the bush.

"You should know, Shirogane."

"So it will still happen, huh…" Then I suppose the BETA we had locked up will see the sun after all.

"Hey, you went through a lot of time loops, right?"

"Yeah, you could say that."

"Is there a way… to do what I need here without using it?" Yuuko-sensei turned our conversation to a sorrowful one, the past that I couldn't change was another thorn in my side.

"…No, there're other measures. I tried, I tried every single one of them. In the end, letting the BETA out was too effective." Years I spent trying to work around the XM3 incident, nothing. My effort was rewarded with failure after failure.

"There're… probably ways around it. However, we came too far… to take this risk." Some plans were too slow, others weren't effective enough. People refused to take the XM3 seriously even after all this, the one lesson I learned here was that this world was truly a stubborn place.

"I see… hehe, than I really am a genius, my first solution does work, after all." With that said, sensei turned her chair away from my sight. The back of her seat buried her mood just enough for me.

"There are sacrifices, there always have to be."

"Truly a mature man, Shirogane…"

"This is all for humanity's future. No regrets, sensei." I could never save everyone. That was just an impossible dream of a child.

"Alright, that was enough depression for one day. At least there is some good news around. It's about your American TSF." Now that sounded exciting after a minute of downheartedness.

"Show me what you got." Yuuko-sensei comforted herself before her computer as she typed away on the keyboard.

"So after a bit of digging around, I discovered some news for you. First, your YF-23 Arondight or whatever is constructed by Boening, not Northrock or Doglam."

"What? That shouldn't be right, is my history wrong?" And I thought I was an A-student too.

"I won't blame you for this, you mentioned the guy last time, right? Northrock had a developer who transferred to Boening, and he was one of the head executives during the ATSF Program."

"So I was right! Then this guy must helped the CIA develop my unit."

"Not quite, here, take a look." The computer screen was rotated in my direction to reveal the face of a white haired man with round glasses just like Class rep.

"Oh, yeah. I know that guy, maybe?"

"Frank Heinemann, current Boening profit executive. He is part of the XFJ Program, you know about that?"

"Yep, yep. Yukon Base, I went there once, it was fun." Those were the good old days when I just travelled the world for my personal enjoyment.

"You went to Yukon? What happened with that? Were you part of their PROMINENCE Project then?" Three rapid-fired questions took me some time to process.

"Wow, wow. Slow down now, sensei. I did go to Yukon some time during my travel., I remember it was after the Yukon Base Incident, but I recall nothing else for now, my memory degeneration problem is quite a pain."

"I see, sorry to hear that." Sensei showed me some rare sympathy for once.

"Doesn't matter, continue."

"Alright, here is the interesting part, the XFJ-01 Shiranui Second is a product of the Project PROMINENCE and its namesake; the XFJ Program. On paper, XFJ's purpose is to further develop the Type-94 Shiranui for the IJA. The Program got indefinitely postponed until further evaluation thanks to a terrorist attack two months ago." Yaay, history.

"However, our little developer here decided to build a new upgraded vision of that frame called Shiranui Second Phase 3. So then everything went south when the CIA found out about this, especially since he used actual parts from the YF-23 itself." Yeah, I would be upset too if someone took apart the nation's property without asking.

"Now, listen carefully; there were two Phase 3s. XFJ-01a Shiranui Second Phase 3 and the XFJ-01b Phase 3, you got that? Only 01a had all that high-tech hacking, resupply and second-gen stealth BS, the 01b didn't have all that. Until the CIA demanded them to be built in, that is." Well, that was plain foolish.

"So that's what I took home? Are the CIA retarded or something? They sent out a test unit armed with all that tech to a foreign nation?" While insulting them, I quietly praised the CIA for letting their million dollar toy fall gracefully into my hands.

"Apparently so, they were pressed by Boening for it and had to use it in the coup as a field test. It wasn't meant to run into you, accidents happened, they improvised terribly and hey. Lucky catch, right?"

"Nice, lucky indeed. Still, why do they even have it built in the first place!? Didn't they get angry BECAUSE Boening made the first one?" I failed to understand their logic.

"Just, calm down and listen. It was for only one reason they modified that machine so heavily, so the newly constructed YF-23 can beat the XFJ-01a Phase 3."

"What…? Why? Aren't they on the same side?"

"You see, because the Phase 3 got stolen by its test pilot." Hearing that, I burst our full blast laughter at the CIA's display of stupidity.

"Stolen!? Hahaha, what is America doing these days? So where is it now?" Uncle Sam really should really hire someone better for their HR department.

"Well, the CIA wanted to know that too. Regrettably, they don't have any proof of its trace other than the parts that got ripped off from the YF-23."

"Hahaha, what a fuckup! So Boening build a super awesome TSF just for it to be stolen, then the CIA tried to chase it down with an equally awesome machine which I took." The degree of CIA's error could not be calculated on a scale.

"Unfortunately, this is where the good part ends. When I called Boening earlier today, they patched me through to the Defence Intelligence Agency who is currently trying to salvage this mess; since, you know, the CIA just got put down." After CIA was DIA, Americans certainly had no creativity.

"Due to the fact that we got the CIA's number one toy here, they tried to cut us a deal: They want the Alternative IV Task Force to capture or destroy the Phase 3 and apprehend its pilots. In exchange, Boening will supply us with any equipment and maintenance need for the Custom YF-23 while the DIA will open up export for its parts to Yokohama Base and grant us official permission to use that unit. To show their sign of goodwill, they agreed to send over some weapon and armour parts if we cooperate right now. "

"That… is a surprisingly good deal. Those Americans really want their stuff back or gone, huh?" As we all knew, America doesn't negotiate too well with others.

"So you'll accept the mission, then?"

"Give me some details first." Sensei nodded slightly and activated the monitor to the side of our room.

"First, do you know about the 331st Special Experimental Development Squadron? It's a Soviet unit."

"The fucking who?" With a tilt of my head, I lost sensei halfway through that tediously long name.

"It's okay if you don't. The important part is this here…" With a click of her mouse, sensei changed the showing slide to two profiles that looked oddly familiar.

"Wait… aren't these the…" I knew by the next second exactly who those two were; no, that wasn't right. I didn't know them, what I understood was their breed.

Two girls, one about nineteen and another about fifteen. Silver hair was the first eye-catching feature; the taller female had it down to her shoulders with a messy fringe up top while the shorter girl opted for a cleaner cut. Both had irises shining in a purple light as if it could stare down a person to their soul. Finally, it was the same; those strange headbands, or more fittingly I should call them headgear. They were the same, the three were the same species.

"These two are who we're after. Known as the Scarlet Twins of Russia, Barchenowa Cryska and Sestina Inia. Former Second Lieutenants of the Idar Flight." Oh, and also, nice ass and tits.

"Russian espers… are they the same as Kasumi?"

"Yeah, the intel suggests that Barchenowa is a generation before Sestina; who shares the same generation name as Kasumi before I changed it." So Kasumi's long-lost sister, Sumika will be quite disappointed by that; or happy, who knows?

"Welp, I certainly heard of the Scarlet Twins. They based in Yukon about a week before I arrived on the 22nd, never met them though."

"That doesn't matter, both the CIA and the Soviets have them listed as defectors to the United States. That's probably why the DIA wants these two so bad." On the other hand, that wasn't good news.

"So are we just gonna hand two espers to the Americans? Just like that?"

"Let me finish. The third target they wanted us to hunt is this man, the US Army's test pilot for the XFJ Program, Bridges Yuuya. Also the pilot who allegedly stole the Phase 3 before going AWOL." The screen flashed again, this time to array the image of a Japanese looking guy about my age.

I don't describe dudes.

"Bridges…? I know this guy from my Yukon loop... Argos Flight, yeah, that's right. Now I remember, Bridges was a good buddy of mine when I joined the America Army. Ah, shit. You're telling me—"

"Yup, your good friend is currently one of the most wanted deserters of the United States. After he ran off with the Scarlet Twins and the Phase 3, he now got marked out for being a terrorist remnant. So…" Quite an interesting update if I do say so myself.

"The fuck… urgga. What a dumbass! Whatever, so we just tag and bag them, right?"

"You're really out for blood these days. The DIA don't care about Bridges but they do want the twins unharmed." Shout out to America's fetish for Russian chicks.

"Alright, let me rephrase this mess. We go to wherever they're hiding, get rid of Bridges, get his TSF, grab the Russians and RTB. That about right?"

"Here, you want a sticker?" With a casual laugh, Yuuko-sensei threw me a paper ball.

"This's ridiculous, no way we can just say yes to this. We don't even know what they're planning to do to these poor, probably highly aggressive girls."

"My thoughts exactly, changing the letter from C to D doesn't make them any less shady. We should accept the terms for now, reach their location and evaluate the situation accordingly and make plans from there." What sensei suggested was much more of a correct method.

"Agreed, send me their files. I'll study this case. I'm not gonna to lie down and be America's janitors."

"That's good, then I'll let them know of our involvement."

"Alright, to the next topic we go." And moved on we did.

—

"Since we're on the topic of PROMINENCE. You know about the EML-99X, right? The Electromagnetic Induction Launcher that is helmed by the Weapons Technology Development Authority. Funny enough, also field tested by Bridges in Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia. Lucklessly, it got infinitely delayed too after the Yukon Base Incident." Sensei rolled out that tongue twister of a sentence with no slurring of any kind.

"Oh, yeah… we got eight of those on the XG-70d, well, supposed to during the first loop anyway. Then as usual, the BETA fucked us and I didn't see the aftermath of that thing. I probably saw it some other loop, but I can't remember that for now."

"Really, eight? So we did get that project revived. Whatever, that doesn't matter right now. We're planning on putting two of those on the XG-70b, but since we can't attach what we don't have. The Ministry of Defence just finished the construction of them and will be directing us two railguns in few days' time." Being the humanity's last hope came with its benefits.

"That's amazing, sensei! We're going to have two of those for the Susanoo II? That'll be really helpful, I'm sure."

"Your future looks pretty bright, Shirogane. All in all, one of the head officers of that project who just happened to be in Japan will be coming over to deliver the weaponry and also inspect the Alternative IV's progress. As the direct Task Force leaders, you and Captain Isumi will be greeting her as formality once she arrives." What a goddamn pain in the ass.

"Welp, guess respect is still required. That's fine. I'm used to waving off inspections."

"Actually, she also happened to be one of the head directors of the XFJ Program. We can definitely squeeze some intelligence out of her as well." Funny how we suddenly got a rush of things from Alaska just like that.

"Now I think about it, you were there, right? How is the Shiranui Second? Give me something here." What a weird question to ask.

"Emm, I remember it was powerful, much more so than the normal Type-94. It felt almost the same as the Type-00 in raw power output, good handling and manoeuvrability paired with faster reaction and uptime makes it a pretty good machine. I sat it's just a step below the regular top-three of TSFs." Those three being the Raptor, Takemikazuchi and the Su-47; like I said, regular listing, Arondight not included.

"Huh, a machine worthy of your praise is rare. I might reconsider some plans."

"What're you up to, sensei?" I felt a little uneasy knowing another secret plot.

"Don't worry, Shirogane. I'm just thinking about the value of PROMINENCE."

"Guess that's okay. I have another topic then." I had no desire to waste time any longer.

"You don't want to know the person?"

"I don't care at all." I had no specific interest in whoever wanted to come over and check to see if we're up to no good.

"Then I'll just tell you the day she comes over, what did you want to say?"

"To the final subject. I will be the one to take responsibility for this incident…" This was the true reason I visited sensei today. It was a hard issue to discuss, but a talk that must be had.

—

"Shirogane… the blood of your fellow men will stain your hands should you choose to bear this blame."

"Then let their blood tighten my grip on the triggers of my weapon."

"This is not your responsibility, let me do this."

"Yuuko-sensei, the child in me died long ago. All that is left here in its place is an empty shell without a heart. You are a scientist, and I am a soldier." The argument was never established ended without a conclusion.

 **December 10, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

Marimo-chan, you got to stop moving around like that. I can't replace your parts if your head keeps on swaying. Let me see here… this is…the left eye, right? That should go in this socket. The side of her skull is completely crushed, but I'll just fix that with some tape or something. Is this a piece of the brain? The left hemisphere is too chewed up for me to recognize. That's okay. I can probably mush it back together and just reattach it somehow. Now if I just stabilize her cranium from falling off. I can fix this in no time…

—

"…AAAAAAH!" A scream I didn't perceive echoed within my bedroom, it was my own cold sweat that drenched my shirt and the blanket.

"…What the fuck…? That was… arghhh…!" I sat up from my stiff bed and rubbed crudely above my eyes. A nightmare, something that I had the fortune of avoiding until now just took place in my sleep.

'…Marimo-chan… shit! It's only four in the fucking morning, I need a shower.' I quickly paced over to my bathroom. The cold running water helped me calm down and reassess my condition. It was too real to be called a mere dream, I could see the body in front of me, I could feel her warm blood and flesh that was freshly tore off from the rest of her body. And what did I try to do? I attempted to fix her up like a child placing back a piece of ripped paper.

'Why… is that happening now…? I never recalled anything this realistically before.' I was there, wherever Marimo-chan was brutally murdered. The memories of my first failure only resurfaced more vividly than ever. I didn't want to remember it. It was cruel, it was vicious and it was mostly my own fault that Marimo-chan was robbed of her young life in such a disgusting fashion.

—

"Takeru-san. Are you awake?"

"Kasumi… sorry for taking your job today." I climbed out of my bed and only sat on the chair beside me. I couldn't sleep after that surreal image was painted so brightly into my mind.

"What happened, Takeru-san? Your colour is very cold and disturbed right now." During my moment of vulnerability, Kasumi was unable to decrypt a vibrant picture from me.

"It was just the past, And I thought my PTSD was cured when I was unfazed by anymore trauma."

"Takeru-san. It's alright, you are safe with us. You'll protect everyone here, and we'll protect you back." Kasumi wrapped her tiny arms around my head and pulled me to her chest. An action that brought instant feeling of warmth and confidence to my distressed heart.

"Yeah, there's no question what I'll do. Don't worry, Kasumi. I'm fine now. It was only a long faded memory." I was taught to laugh about my past. Even if it pained me to my very bone. I'll laugh at it, and then change the future from its original outcome.

 **PX**

I decided to erase my more than unpleasant thoughts by shoving some food down my throat. So it was ironic that Marimo-chan was enjoying her own breakfast when I approached the café.

"Marimo-chan, mind if I join you?"

"Shirogane —Captain, make yourself comfortable." I lowered my plate beside Marimo-chan's and took the seat with only inches between us. Marimo-chan was a little aware of that fact but could only dismiss it as her rank didn't allow rebuttal.

"So, what's going on then, Marimo-chan?"

"Captain, you are informed of today's XM3 exercise, right? I'll be preparing for that after my meal." We chitchatted about random topics as we ingest our food. The friendly atmosphere was greatly appreciated by myself. It wasn't awkward to hold a normal conversation with Marimo-chan now, unlike the many other times that I tried before.

"…I'm starting to feel sorry for that bread." After some time, Marimo-chan finished her main dish and was furiously biting a loaf of bread to pieces.

"Huh…? Ah… I didn't even notice." Her movements were very extreme for eating a wheat product. It was almost like she was driving her anger and madness into the very core of that bread.

"Marimo-chan… are you taking medical substances?"

"What… no! But this's quite strange. I'm feeling weird since this morning… it's just that… I'm somewhat uneasy about this whole thing." I literally couldn't think of a comeback for what she revealed.

"Why's that?" She shuffled in her seat, not sure how to best explain herself.

"I probably shouldn't bother you with this but… it feels as if… today is just a very… tasty day? Sorry Captain, I shouldn't trouble you with my own delusions." Now that was funny, not the good funny, but still funny.

"You feel that way? That's… indeed very strange." It shouldn't be happening. Marimo-chan may have died during my first loop. But most other times she was just fine and dandy after the incident. The episodes I had were also mostly from my very first loop, it seemed that memories from my later ones were harder to recall.

"I'm probably just tired these days. I haven't been reassigned after 207th— it's the A-01 13th now right?"

"Yep, the Archangel Squadron is what we're calling ourselves. Don't ask me how I came up with that name." Marimo-chan ultimately stopped torturing the loaf and gulped it all down.

"Anyway, now that the squad graduated. I don't know what I'll be ordered to do next. It's perhaps just the change in my schedule that's bringing this tension. Please pay no mind to what I said, Captain."

"Sure, just take good care of yourself then, Sergeant Jinguuji. You're a very important mentor to everyone in my squad. I'm most likely the one most indebted to you." Marimo-chan flustered a little before finding her composure.

"Your words honour me, Captain. But I'm afraid I did nothing to justify such respect."

"You don't know this, Marimo. But I could never repay you for what you had taught me. Even now, your lessons are craved deeply within my own heart." Marimo-chan was the best instructor I could ever hope for.

"Eh? What do you mean by that, Captain?! Have we met somewhere else…?" Her sentence drifted off by the end.

"Don't worry about my rambling. Come on then, We still have some work left in groundwork for the trials, right?"

"Ahh… of course, Captain." With that, we exited the PX and went to set up today's exercise.

 **Author's note**

I continued reading the Alternative manga these days, the Chinese scan, that is. The English scan's latest is during the coup when they got airdropped on, after that, nothing. The Chinese one goes all the way to Isumi's Kamikaze which is just sooo much further. (Chinese world power) Now, I do understand Chinese, on an elementary level, so reading that thing is quite a pain, like seriously. It is very fruitful though, there are a lot of details that wasn't in the VN which was partly included in this fic, it also talked a bit about Sagiri's backstory and what exactly happened to Ayamine's father. (Might do an short arc on this later, fill some people in) Overall, the manga is quite great as a source for extra information, now if only it's fully translated.

Again, it hasn't happened yet but this story could get slowed down at any time without warning due to personal issues so do beware. I try to keep a constant update timetable but it's a bit hard with all my personal life. (which I don't even have, where's all my time at!?) I apologize in advance, although I feel like I said this sometime before.

Anyway, enough of my ramblings. Thank you for reading another chapter and don't forget to like and subscribe… that's not right. If you feel that this story deserves it, feel free to Favourite, follow and review. Although I know most of you just lurks all over the place. (Don't worry, I do that often as well. Just look at my fav and follow page.) But I digressed, you're free to do as you wish. Of course, I'll be happy when someone leaves me a little something by the end of reading.

BETA done by chad001, you see this? This is long enough, your weekly joke thread is cancelled, don't look here for anything else.

BETA edit: my BETA here is not too familiar with the great Fanfic link censorship in his review. The link starts with youtube dot com and you need to add and equal sign between the v and w. If you have no idea what I'm talking about… don't worry about it. Just PTSD stuff.


	19. Repeated history

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 10, 2001**

 **Briefing room**

"This exercise is meant to determine how good my rewritten XM3 OS is compared to the prototype that you're used to. All TSFs here have already been converted to that XM3 excluding our squad and the Valkyries, that is. One Platoon from every Armoured Unit on this base will undergo the same performance evaluation and see the results of it. So we'll all be competing against each other." My Company gathered in the briefing room after their breakfast. I was just going over some of the details for the trials.

"All the TSFs participating in the exercise will have the new OS…? Sounds tough."

"Welp, that's how things are going to happen, Mikoto. There are some changes between their more designed version and our concept vision. But it's not significant enough for me to mention it. No one will have any accumulated data for this so in some ways it's purely a contest of skills. The difference in versions is just an excuse for this test to take place."

"So this exercise is also meant to see how well first-time Eishi can adapt to and make use of the XM3." Class rep picked up another point easily.

"Yeah, that too. Our squad will be participating as developmental test pilots since that's who we are; so this fact, along with the name of the inventor, me. And the fact that you all were cadets until yesterday was given out to all units. It's just in case we suck shi—" Sumika shot me a glare which stopped my cursing.

"Just in case our score is bad. But that won't matter, I want you girls to downright crush the scoreboard and destroy any opponents you clash with. As the elite squad in making of the A-01 Task Force, this is the time for us to show our true strength and power."

"Yes, sir!" The morale was high amongst the female soldiers, their role in saving this world was just beginning.

"Alright, Sergeant Jinguuji. Please explain the rules and details."

"Yes, sir. Three evaluations will take place —measuring TSF reaction speeds on Training Ground No. 1, measuring changes to the burden on movement control system on Training Ground No. 2 and finally a combat test…" I shoved my task to Marimo-chan once again, she went through in detail all of the valuations for our assessment.

"So basically, the first test is for your accuracy, second one is for your movements, and the final is mock combat. As you would think, combat test against veterans is the most important trial here. There will be no room for slacking off during battle. If we want people to truly understand how much more capable the new OS is, we need to beat those Eishis who are so used to the old OS. Of course, we'll also be wrecking anyone that attempts to overtake our score anyway."

"So brutal, Capt. Takeru… I like it." Ayamine showed her approvement.

"Are there anymore questions?" Marimo-chan only received silence as answer.

"In that case, I'll take my leave." She exited to give the team some time alone.

"Listen up, team. The odds this time is what you call stacked, and stacked hiiigh up there. We got three teams with a two-man Element running against veterans who just refuse to die even if they get fed rat poison. So the obvious thing to do here is to win, win like it's your natural instinct." The crew shared some looks with each other.

"We have nowhere else to go but up, we have nothing else to take but victory. This is when we don't have a choice, right now, we must come out triumphant and that's what we'll do from now on till forever."

"The only path for us… is a road for a champion, huh? I see you have quite some high expectations of us."

"And we were only cadets until yesterday too! Awawa… this is so… big! All of a sudden!" Including Meiya and Tama, the rest of the girls were also nervously excited for their future.

"Guess so, hum? Again, we— I mean you all may have been cadets until recently but that changes nothing, the enemy won't care for your rank when fighting. So we'll go out there and crush the others, l want nothing less from any of you."

"Yes, sir!" I sought no other answer from them and they gave me none.

"Alright, I'll give out our new callsigns since I totally forgot yesterday." That change of mood took place in a fraction of a second.

"That's Takeru, alright! He always forgets the most important parts!" Mikoto's crack brought some laughers from the others.

"The order starting goes from 1 to 8. Starting from me, then is Sumika, Kasumi, Class rep, Meiya, Mikoto, Ayamine and finally Tama. Any questions?" I was denied in the form of silence and shaking heads.

"Good, good. Let's hit the PX for some fast food and get ready to battle. No use standing around the place."

 **Training Ground No. 2**

"—this is Archangel 5, Bandit 4 spotted by D-21. Pursuing now."

"—Archangel 1 copy, currently engaging Bandit 2." I wasn't really fighting the veteran Gekishin, it was more like I was toying around with it until I get bored.

I got paired up with Meiya for our battle, Sumika teamed up with Class rep and Mikoto while Kasumi led Ayamine and Tama. Normally a three man team was the preferred setup, but being a player short wasn't making that much difference for the duo of us.

I shot around the Gekishin and forced it to evade behind several old buildings. It wasn't as exciting as I had hoped the mock combat to be, the gap between me and any normal Eishi was just too large. I hadn't taken any opponents seriously to this day.

"—Archangel 5, splashed Bandit 4." Meiya was done with her prey already, which took away my only excuse to play around.

"Copy that, I'll just end it fast." I charged in to flush out the last target.

The only aggressor Gekishin dashed around its cover and jumped above me to try and catch my back. With the XM3, I instantly reverse boosted behind it while in midair, performed a 180 degrees backflip, sliced its rear cover flawlessly while up-side down and landed with a perfect ten from the judges that weren't there.

"Splashed Bandit 2."

"—fictional enemy unit annihilated… evaluation complete. All units return to hanger and stand by for further instructions." Marimo-chan announced over the comms the end of the combat exercise.

"Archangel 1, copy."

"Archangel 5, copy that."

 **Hanger**

"Nicely done, Meiya. That should be the fastest clear at 3 minutes and 14 seconds." I patted Meiya's back when she joined me on the upper walkway.

"Thank you, Takeru. Your instructions were very clean and on point."

"And whoever can understand orders and execute them this precisely is also a first-class Eishi. Be proud of yourself, Meiya. We got an equal amount of kills, after all." She nodded with confidence. I was glad that our atmosphere wasn't at all awkward, all thanks to whatever Sumika convinced Meiya of this morning.

Our first session was a piece of cake, to a bit of my surprise; Meiya was shockingly skillful with her maneuvers and accuracy. We wiped the floor clean off with those guys who I assumed to be overflowing with salt, or very impressed by our performance.

"…I wish to discuss another matter, Takeru. Is that alright with you?"

"About this morning? Yeah, sure." I had nothing to hide at this point.

"I… I just want to ask a single question…" If there was something Meiya wanted to know, she had everything right to hear it.

"Sure, go ahead."

"Takeru, if I were to lose favour with you. Will you still treat me the same way?" It took some time until I came up with an answer that should satisfy Meiya.

"I know that I love you, Meiya. But it's different from the normal kind of affection that you would think. I fell in love with you a long time ago, so I can't say that's what I'm feeling, but I also had the chance to fall in love with others in our squad… It's an abnormal experience, really. I'm from a different past, a different world." Giving out too much could endanger whatever causality crap that entangled me for all this time, however I knew Meiya wanted the truth more than anything.

"I don't expect you to accept me for who I am, or even understand my rambling here. Still, know that my feeling for you will never recede. You are and will be the most important person in my life." After those words, Meiya retracted deep into her thoughts, no doubt considering her own emotions on this matter.

"I see… I have kept you waiting long enough, Takeru. You deserve an answer to both of our feelings." That would be nice.

"Then go ahead, Meiya." After mentally preparing herself one more time, Meiya faced me straight on with determination clearly blooming from her appearance.

"I too, wish to be of your support. This feeling of mine, I am still unfamiliar with how I am supposed to adapt from now on. However, I do understand that my heart yearns to be with yours, Takeru. So please, love me as well." Meiya's firm reply was all the strength I'll need.

"Of course, Meiya. My feelings are one with yours." Having received both of our answers, Meiya blushed brightly while I laughed from the bottom of my heart.

It was not a grand confession we shared, it was certainly not like how I first loved Meiya back in my old world. We had so many options back then, there was no need to cherish that life we enjoyed. Now was different; our emotions for each other were limited by the overbearing duty we shouldered, but nobody ever said love had to be a presentation. I love Meiya and I know she loves me back, this was everything that matters to me, I am satisfied just understanding that she will be there for me.

—

"Ah! Takeru-chan! Over here!" I saw a dumb girl waving her hand in my direction five meters out.

Having finished our short discussion, both Meiya and I relocated to the leaderboard where the score was posted.

"Yeah, thanks Sumika. Because you know, that I'm blind to stupidity. Your hand signal really assisted me there." She would never understood the insult anyway, no need to add in logic.

"Mou! Takeru-chan is such a meanie! But anyway, look! The scoreboard!" She pointed to the panel that displayed our results. Kasumi's team also gathered by us to review the numbers.

The Company returned from their skirmishes as triumphant victors. My Element toped the scoreboard followed by Sumika's team who was only slightly behind, Kasumi's group closed the gap even further between our three Platoons.

"Everyone got A+? I must say that I'm relatively impressed by this. Good job, team!" Some high-fives were handed out to the crew. A confused Meiya got even more confused when I traded hand gestures with Kasumi.

"But Takeru-san still got the highest individual score!"

"Takeru… too pro, good job."

"And he only had Meiya-san as a teammate, too! You two must be very skilled!"

"That is not the case, Yoroi. Takeru led the charge and I only followed behind."

"Meiya-san did very good too. I saw the video recording."

"That's right. Mitsurugi certainly carried her own weight here."

"Then everyone did super good! We took the top eight spots on the leaderboard!" The team congratulated one another for our performances.

"What're the afternoon teams, lads?"

"I think it's Mitsurugi-san with Sakaki-san and Yoroi-san." Tama energetically replied first.

"That's right, me and Tamase are with Squad leader…" Ayamine reported the second team with a smug look.

"Ah, that means I'm with Kasumi-chan! Yaay!" Kasumi was forced into a bear hug by none other than the box of pure hype.

"—Mechanic Team 4, begin your inspection of STF 13th Squadron for the afternoon trial… repeat, Mechanic team 4…" The overhead speaker brought up some uninteresting news.

"We're already a Special Task Force now! This is so exciting!" Shared Mikoto.

"Hehe, we do this two steps at a time, girls. Go grab some food and prepare yourselves for the afternoon." I waved them off as the train all moved to the PX.

"Huh? Takeru-chan! Are you not coming?" Sumika took notice of my absence within the group.

"Me? I got this—"

"Hey, Capt. Shirogane, right? You're the only guy I see here." At that moment, I got called by another Eishi with hilariously blond hair.

" _Got to deal with these guys first, it won't be long._ "

" _If you say so, Takeru-chan. I'll get you some food then._ " With a little worry inside her, Sumika left while herding the rest of my squad along.

"Yep, I'm the Captain here. What you want?" We casually shared salute before the man spoke again.

"Come talk with us if you're free, got a few questions." That was among the lines I predicted.

"Yeah, sure. Lead the way."

—

"—Hey… I found him." When the UN Eishi called me to tag along, I once again met up with his team.

"Usp, Capt. Shirogane of the Archangel Squadron." I saluted relaxingly as they did the same.

"Huuuh… so you're Shirogane? Got a greeeat face, I'll give you that." Bandana applauded my appearance without respect.

"This guy? I guess he does look pretty good." Then gorilla just publicly judged me.

"He was the only man in that squad. It's definitely him."

"He does look really handsome, unlike the gorilla we have here. How do you pilot a TSF, anyway?" Being the last one to speak, Twister Head came off with the expected joke.

"Gyahahaha!" Overdose Dye and Bandana laughed a bit together. I allowed them to go back and forth a bit since I found the conversation quite nostalgic too.

The conversation drove all over the place while I put my mind on auto-pilot.

"So you seriously are that Abyssal Phantom guy, then? I can actually kinda see that." That extremely chuunibyou byname caught my attention.

"Wait, what did you just call me?" Maybe I exerted a bit too much force into my words as the four Eishis suddenly flinched from my question.

"Huh… ah. No, no, Capt. Shirogane. It's just a dumb nickname some teams came up with. Please don't worry too much."

"Ah, no. I didn't mean it like that, sorry but I'm actually curious about this nickname." They calmed down after my instinctive menace wore off.

"Well, you and your squad are piloting a Type-97 today, right? I think cause rumours said that the team leader of 207th's got a pure black TSF that nobody else has seen before, so my best guess it the ghost part came from there." Bandana explained easily to me.

"Really now? What about the 'Abyssal' part then?" She became clearly uncomfortable with telling me the continuation.

"Come on now, we can say it. It's not like anything bad." Twister Head took my side in this little discussion.

"Ah, you all are so slow, I'll tell you, Captain. It's just your person, the others say that you're quite hollow." What Gorilla exposed was somewhat shocking to me.

"Me, hollow? What does that mean?"

"Aaar, it's just your feature, Capt. Shirogane. Nothing to get worked up about."

"Yeah, it's nothing, really." After the others also reassured my common being, I lost interest in a mere stupid nickname. Sure, it was uncomfortable as hell, but nicknames were a sign of respect most of the time, like this one.

—

"Hahaha! Anyway, so I told her to make the jump, right? But she ended up falling face first right into the ditch. It was just that great of a moment!"

"Gyahahahaha!" The current topic was about some of my team's hilarious blunders.

After the short chat about whatever Eishis out there were calling me these days, the subject was brought back to its origin; my XM3 and crazy piloting skills. Then we side-tracked easily onto some more random crap.

"Ahaa… but Captain. You're quite a genius yourself to have come up with that OS." The theme once again switched back to the XM3 after some time.

"It's really just my experience. There are times when you absolutely need the TSF to move as you wish."

"True that, we're called veterans. But with that OS and your skills, there's really no comparison. Maybe one day we can be somewhere on your level." Bandana commented on the gap between me and other normal soldiers.

"Then that's a goal for you all to concentration on. Once you guys get your hands on the OS, make sure to use it to its full power. Our enemies are the BETA, and we're the spearhead of mankind. There is no good reason to hold back at any time, don't forget that."

"Yes, sir!" They all saluted me after a little lecture. Being high ranking was so satisfying in any cases.

"Feels kind of weird to be lectured by someone younger than me though."

"Aaaa-hahaha!" We joked around some more until they had to exit due to their duties.

—

"Eyes up, Takeru!"

"Don't even need to." A sandwich sailed through the air and I caught it singlehandedly without looking. Because pro, that's why.

"Woow, so coooool, Takeru-chan!" Sumika walked in with Meiya and leaned on the railing in front of me, overseeing the hanger.

"Are you not going to join the rest of us in the PX?" Meiya unwrapped her own food once she was beside me.

"Nah, got stuff to complete here. I say that, but nobody is even around right now."

"Kei-san wanted a piece of Yakisoba so I gave her one, that okay?"

"Yup, I got to feed my pets, right?" Two disapproving looks were shot my way.

"Huhu, Takeru… you are just…"

"Taaakkeeruu-chaannn… never gonna change…" Got that right.

"So then, other than being completely let down by me, what else is going on?"

"We're on lunch break as well so me and Meiya-san came to visit you!" I was in no mood to correct Sumika's grammar.

"Indeed, we are free as of the time being."

"That's nice… oh, I just remembered, do I look empty as a person to you two?" Since I still had a strong impression on that title thingy, I asked my most trusted girls for judgement.

"Errrm… Takeru, you are actually quite a bit… un—"

"Do you look empty? I can't see it." Sumika cut off Meiya with her own view right before she was about to give hers.

"Huuuh? What you think, Meiya?"

"A-aaha, you are fine as is, T-Takeru." She was surprisingly scratchy when answering me.

"Welp, if you two say so. I don't care either way. People seem to be giving me nicknames and such…" Ending that topic with a whisper, we finally dug into our meals that were no longer fresh.

—

The three of us watched the mechanics on the bottom floor work around all the frames that were to be sent for the afternoon mock exam. A solid black YF-23 was transported to the slot next to Meiya's Takemikazuchi.

"Takeru, is that not your unit during the coup?"

"Yep, courtesy of American's intelligence agency, I got that TSF free of charge. Also no strings are attached because they couldn't connect any." I admired my Custom Arondight from a distance.

It felt almost alien besides a Type-00R, Meiya's version that was specially designed for the Shogun. This was the power of the UN, bringing together Eishis from all around the world. We just took our TSFs along, that's all.

"What do you plan on doing with that unit?"

"I'll use it when I need to. Can't really put it to full effectiveness right now. I still need backup parts and replacements, stuff like that. They'll arrive soon enough, I hope."

"I believe that to be wise as well. You are the man that said to use any tools provided, were you not?"

"Yeah, did say that." We talked about nothing in particular until an idea flashed passed my head.

"Hey, why don't you transfer the Slave System control for your Type-00 onto your Fubuki?"

"Huh…? I do not mind doing that if you have a good reason." It wasn't difficult to change the remote function of a TSF, just time-consuming.

"I want to test the effectiveness of the XM3 under Slave Mode. You know, for science. You can try it out after the mock battle this afternoon."

"Ah, alright then, I will get to it once we are done here." Meiya was so obedient these days. I didn't complain because that's how I liked them.

"Don't waste the mechanic's time by removing the weapons; live rounds can't hurt anything if it doesn't shoot."

"Of course, they must be busy preparing for the afternoon exercise as well."

"Welp, might as well end things now. You have anything else you want to bring up?" That was the last thing I wished to speak to Meiya about.

"Nothing on my mind as of now, I shall exit myself first, if you do not mind."

"Alright, later, Meiya."

"Bye, Meiya-san! Good luck on the afternoon's battle!"

"Goodbye, Takeru, Sumika. I wish you both fortunes during your exercise similarly." With that, Meiya turned and headed elsewhere.

"You were abnormally quiet, Sumika. What? Your time of the month?"

"Wawwa! Actually, I won't even say anything to that! Humph!" Her puffed cheeks presented her upset perfectly to me.

"Not denying me, woman? Then I must be right." When her comeback was not delivered, I detect a gloomy mood over Sumika's mind.

" _You'll save her this time, right? Marimo-sensei._ " This must been the cause of her sorrow.

" _Yeah, obviously. That isn't even a question._ "

"…Okay." It was also unusual that my words didn't cheer up Sumika.

"Hey, what's wrong? Like really." Sumika hanged her head over the railing for a short while before sloping herself alongside my side.

"I'm… a bit scared for this afternoon." So it was this after all.

"You don't have to worry, Sumika. Just be yourself, it'll work out." With my right arm wrapped around her shoulder, I comforted Sumika like a good boyfriend, if I could still call myself that.

"I… don't know. I haven't been in contact with any BETA yet."

"You're fine, Sumika. Believe in me, it's not your fault that you act like that."

"But… but I won't even be myself when that happens!" Her point was a valid one without a doubt.

"Come on, now. You know I accepted and will accept any part of you, Sumika. I love you, all of you, for that matter." With those cheesy lines, I pulled Sumika in close for a kiss.

"I… thank you, Takeru-chan. My urges… they are harder and harder to control these days…"

"It'll be okay. Besides, I don't even see it as anything bad." While still unsure of herself, Sumika became much more jolly after being comforted by me.

"Then I will go all out, Takeru-chan. I'll kill them all, for you."

"Thank you, Sumika." And there was nothing to commune about after that.

—

"Hey, Captain. You done in there?" A mechanic called out to me on the cat-walk above my cockpit entrance.

"Yeah, I'm good. Is this thing's weapon loaded?"

"Can confirm. The assault rifle has around 1800 36mm and five 120mm armour-piercing left. The sword's condition is good, but without anything to work with, it's not a smart idea to bring that into combat." The details pleased me to an average amount. I wanted everything to be a hundred percent, which was not nearly close to possible right now.

"How about the XM3, got that installed?"

"Sure did, took us some time figuring out the American system. But it was an easy nut to crack in the end."

"Alright then, thanks for your help."

"No problem, Captain. If you don't mind me asking, why you checking on the Black Widow now? Nothing changed from the day you brought this thing back." This engineer was in charge of looking after the Arondight, so I wasn't alarmed by his knowledge.

"We'll be testing the Slave Mode and its compatibility with the new OS." I pulled myself out of the controls and onto the same walkway.

"I see, well then. I'll be getting out of here for some food. Call me if you need me, Captain." The mechanic ran off after handing me the PDA with all the data.

—

"Oh! Tsukuyomiiiii-channn!"

"Captain… Shirogane. What is your business?" An ominous glare was held back to the best of Tsukuyomi's ability.

I found Tsukuyomi just wandering around in our hanger this afternoon, she was probably looking for Meiya or something, not like I cared all that much.

"What do you think of our performance so far?"

"The OS certainly has its merit. However I cannot be convinced without any personal experience." Just like Tsukuyomi, she refuted anything that she didn't try herself.

"But you have seen our recording, right? We demolished the other team."

"I cannot tell if that is due to the skills of your subordinates or just the ability of the OS."

"How about this then, here." I handed over a mobile device much to her confusion.

"Captain… is it the new OS?" Nice guess, the right one too.

"Yep, go to town this that thing." Tsukuyomi gauged me with eyes full of doubt, I just lazily flashed a smile in response.

"Very well then, I shall trust your words, Capt. Shirogane." Finally changing her mood from a menacing one to a slightly less, but still menacing smirk; Tsukuyomi judged my attitude before turning to leave.

"Much appreciated, First Lieutenant." And we just dismissed each other without a word of send-off.

—

"Yuuko-sensei, we'll be deploying soon."

"I know, how is it being all famous now?"

"It's doing me quite good. I like the popularity of being recognized."

"Then that's good, you want to move up the ranks quickly, right?"

"Don't think it'll go any faster than this, but thanks anyway."

"Then you also know what that means, right? Here, you asked for this."

"Yeah, I know. The blood will be on my hands."

 **Training Ground No. 3**

"Bandit 1… splashed." Ayamine cornered the final target and gave its outside armour a new paintjob.

"Alright, nicely done, Archangel 7. All targets neutralized, prepare to RTB."

"Archangel 7, copy that."

"Archangel 8, copy that." Tama and Ayamine's faces disappeared off my screen after we disconnected. We just beat another team of Gekishins running the old OS, that was our third flawless win in a row. The optimism was high for the trio of us, however that was about to be meaningless in another or so minute.

Within my hands, I firmly gripped a detonator, a spark plug that was fated to doom the lives of many of my comrades. Yuuko-sensei delivered me this tool before my departure, per my requested yesterday. But even if this was an unavoidable sacrifice, the souls that I'll wipe out with these hands still pained me to consider. I cannot go back now, maybe I could never go back from the start.

'Forgive me… lives that I must deduct for our future. I will carry this burden to the end of hell and never forget those names.' A single press of a button was all it took to start this new inferno.

—

The mechanical gates of hell unleashed our nightmares that took physical form as our invaders called BETA. They rushed out, eager to destroy property and lives like an organic wave of tsunami-wave; obliterating anything in their path as they followed nothing else but animal instinct.

"—that was from Area 2…"

"—Eh…?! Explosion? There's no one using live rounds in this exercise, right? Could it be an accident?" A second one went off as Tama and Ayamine observed the situation. The three numbers that represented our most hated foes appeared over my displays.

"Code 991! Repeat, a Code 991 has occurred in Area 2!"

Following that bright red flash on top of my display, the ever sentimental beeping of my alarm fuelled me with a feeling of evocative dread; it was a constant, never stopping warning signal. Accompanied by the rush of messages, orders and confusion induced yells all burst onto the public channel at once, my blood boiled as an unexplainable excitement filled my sentiment.

This was the melody of war, the music of my life.

"—HQ to Hornet 3. Give me a sitrep." Hornet flight was closest to ground zero when I unleashed the BETA force.

"—Hornet 3 to HQ! Code 991 has occurred in Training Area No. 2. I have a visual on three enemies! I know nothing else!" More shouts echoed through the comms. It was impossible for a single flight to hold off the advancing BETA, but HQ had no choice other to order their delay while the backup switch to combat loadout.

"HQ to Hornet 3. The Quick Reaction Force is being armed, hold off the incoming enemy."

"Hornet 3 to HQ! We only got paintballs here! Let us retreat to the hanger!"

"Negative, Hornet 3. Continue evading the enemies." Nobody was in a good spot right about now.

"—HQ to all units. Moving to DEFCON 1. Repeat, moving to DEFCON 1. HQ to all units participating in the exercise. The exercise has been cancelled. Units Sword, Cracker and Storm are to rendezvous with Hornet and block the enemy advance into Area 2." Headquarters was able to respond fast enough to prevent the aliens from pouring into our area. Still, not cleaning up my own mess was just bad manners.

"All units on standby in Hanger 23, switch to combat gear. Units Axe, Lancer and Swath go to Hanger 27 and switch to combat gear." As shouts of panic and fear overtook our radio, I knew it was time for me to take some responsibility. As cold-hearted as I was, letting fellow Eishis meet their demise without at least an attempt at rescuing them was not an option.

"—Archangel 1 to Shark and Falcon Units. Rendezvous immediately and retreat to Hanger 37. Bring every weapon over there and halt the enemy advancement into Area 1. Archangel Unit will reinforce friendlies in Area 2." I gave out orders being the highest ranking officer in command.

"—Shark 1, copy that."

"—Falcon 1, copy that."

"Archangel unit, we don't have time to dilly-dally now. Follow after me and backup Hornet Flight in Area 2." My team was the only ones still a little shocked, hopefully the upcoming combat will change their views.

"—Archangel 5, c-copy that!"

"—Archangel 3, roger."

"—Archangel 2, understood!"

"Archangel 5, use the Slave System and call out your Type-00. Load as much weapon and ammo onto it as you can." There was a reason that I asked Meiya to install the remote controls previously.

"Archangel 5, copy… weapons are being loaded now!" I activated my own Arondight and called it to the front lines.

"Archangel 1 to all Archangel units. This is it. This is the end of our training. We have been sitting in pods and running around like idiots all for this moment. Show those freaks from space that humanity isn't going to just lay down and take it! I know we're all tense and maybe scared of our first ever engagement. Nevertheless, you all have to remain calm and remember your training, with that the first eight minutes will pass in a flash. All units, advance forward and crush those extra-terrestrial bugs!"

"Copy that!" Even if the girls were afraid by our overwhelming enemies, they had no alternative now other than to combat against immense odds to retain their own lives and the lives of their fellow comrades.

—

"—Hornet 3 to HQ! We can't keep running like this! Let us retreat to the hanger!" As the Hornet Flight's futile attempt to contain the BETA failed, a request for retreat was inputted again.

"—HQ to Hornet 3, we can't allow that. Do whatever you can to buy us some time."

"—Sword 1 to HQ! Requesting artillery support! Here are the coordinates!" It was Sword flight's turn to ask for support.

"—HQ to Sword 1. Procuring artillery. Wait ninety seconds."

"—where are the rapid response teams!?" The unwinnable battle escalated quickly as more and more BETA poured out from every direction.

—

"—SHIT! Hornet 2! Watch your back!"

"—This is Hornet 4! I can't hold on any longer! We need to pull back now befor— ARGHAa!" A Gekishin was knocked down to the hard ground and trampled by the incoming Destroyer-class without mercy.

"FUCK! Hornet 4! You fucking assholes!" More rounds aimed at the hard shells of the Destroyers fired only to be bounded off with no damage done.

"Damn it HQ! We seriously cannot hold on any longer here!"

"—Sword 1, taking heavy casualties! Requesting permission to retreat! Where are the choppers!? I need that artillery support! Now!"

"—HQ to Sword 1. Only saturation bombing would be effective. Buy us more time." Everything sounded so simple with words. Sword unit was losing their men like mad.

A broken TSF was smashed down by a Grappler-class and finished off with the charge of a Destroyer-class before the eyes of its teammates.

"This is sword 2! We need to fall back now! We can't hold this line any long—" The attacking BETA cared not for what the Eishi's cry for help and only pushed even stiffer than before.

The pilots engaging in this frantic battle against the BETA was not going to come out on top without any help.

"—Arghaaa! NO! STAY AWAY!" Another Gekishin was about to fall prey to the threat that was the BETA.

As luck would have it, reinforcement presented itself in the form of a single frame.

"—Wha! That's a…!" A black American 3rd generation fighter surfaced as it crossed the horizon of above the BETA. Halls of bullets collided with the right side of the BETA Destroyer-class frontline. A dozen of the monsters were put down in an instant before the surface fighter laid its payload of 120mms into a crowd of Grappler-class to maximum effect.

"—this is Captain of the A-01 13th squadron. Hornet and Sword units fall back to area 3 and rearm. Cracker and Storm units are to retreat to Area 1. This place is no good, give us your weapons and we'll try to box them in for now!"

"Wait! HQ ordered for—"

"This is by my orders! Just get going! Archangel Squad will hold this line!" Two flights of Fubukis rushed behind the Gekishins and took their assault rifles around the field without even stopping their momentum. Meiya's Type-00 also appeared at the nick of time and delivered us supplementary stock.

"Alright, Sword 1, copy! Thank you, Captain!"

"Hornet 1, copy! You saved us big time here!"

"Cracker 1, copy. Retreating now. Thanks for the help."

"Storm 2, roger that. Don't die on us now!" The remaining members of the four Platoons pulled out and allowed the Archangel Squadron to take center stage.

—

"—Takeru-chan, Takeru-chan! The BETA! I see them! There're so many! They're everywhere!"

"—believe it or not, I see them too."

"Then that means… I can kill them, right? I can kill them all?!"

"Yeah… they're all yours."

"Yaay! I'm gonna kill every single one of those aliens!"

—

"—Archangel 3, give me a weapon count!"

"—three assault rifles and three PB-Blades leftover, four assault rifles and two PB-Blades from supply." A calm, corrected rundown by Kasumi was greatly appreciated.

"Archangel 1, 2, 5 and 7 grab the swords! The rest will handle the firearms! Have two guns at the ready and just fire the paintballs if you run out!" Now was not a time for the team to question me so nobody did. Everyone member focused solely on my orders and cleansed their minds of any distraction.

"Archangel 3, 4, 6 and 8 will provide cover fire on all Grappler-class. They're the crab looking guys. Shoot the fleshy parts of the head and body! I'll take Archangel 2, 5 and 7 to engage the Destroyer-class. They look like a moving charging triangle, but their ass is very weak and can't slowdown in time. Just don't get rammed and you're good! Finally, the tank class looks like red spiders, their fast but weak, shoot them last but never let them get close. The extra units are to be put on either remote or auto-pilot and support us as well!"

"—Roger that!" My Fubuki drew a sword from the supply container that was left among the rest of the ammunition.

Once everyone was prepared, I led Sumika, Meiya and Ayamine as the forefront against a wave of Destroyers. The aliens that shielded themselves with their hard shells appeared out of nowhere, right in front of us.

"That… is the BETA."

"They… look scary." It appeared that Meiya and Ayamine were still calm enough to state the obvious.

"You three, boost on my mark." From the monitors that scanned the condition of my team I could clearly discern a sudden change in heart rate from the three Eishis that flanked my sides. Meiya and Ayamine's reason was logical and easy to understand, fear.

They were afraid, they must had been. The brutal, merciless force that pushed against us and threatened the very existence of humanity stood— crawled right before their very eyes.

"Ahhr…"

"Where's my answer, girls!" Yet, still they had to face them, they must fight back for our survival.

"Ah, —copy!" We inched closer and closer towards the aliens that trembled this earth, they were out for our blood, what they didn't know was that we were the same.

"Come on now… 3… 2… 1… forward boost! Thirty metres off the ground!" As a team, we executed the maneuverer flawlessly, they followed my movements and we boosted over the first line and shot behind their tremendously solid shells for lethal kills.

"Nice kills! Second wave incoming!" Our conflict raged on with blood drying the outside of our mechanical tools of warfare.

"Archangel 4, 6, 8. Grappler incoming, fire on my mark." Behind me, Kasumi instructed the firing team was her usual composure and peace. Even when the setting was a war-torn battle ground, she never once lost her tranquil self.

My remote controlled Arondight was back with the rest, providing support fire like I ordered. The PB-blade in my hands sliced through layers of BETA tissues and stained my frame in their reddish blood.

"Archangel 5, reduce your altitude! Flight ceiling is still in effect!" We had already hopped over half a dozen of charging Destroyers, yet the supply of these bugs were literally infinite.

"Archangel 5, copy that!" Meiya's Fubuki lowered itself before it could become target practice for the Laser-class.

—

It was a battle of life and death, a war of controlled chaos. We fought on, slaying any foes that dared to oppose the soldiers. Ayamine and Meiya were tense, as they should be; but they were efficiently killing the BETA under my command, which was all that mattered in this battle.

Nonetheless, there was another person that I was immensely interested in.

From the corner of my sight, I could clearly spot Sumika ripping apart groups of Destroyer and Grappler-Class alike. She always wanted this; maybe it was revenge, or just pure hatred for those things that took everything from her.

"AHAHHA! This is so much fun! They're all dying so quickly!" Sumika's screams of euphoria as she massacred waves after waves of BETA were concealed by the constant frantic shouts over our comms.

Her blissful aspect shined marvellously as seen from my retinal projection. In some ways, we all had that switch for combat; once fl **i** pped, the everyday personality goes out the window and our military personas take over our bodies. Sumika was much more drastic compared to how Kasumi and I acted in this regard; she was always out for their blood.

At this point, simulation wasn't enough to satisfy that strange hunger. This battlefield was one of a few rare instances when she could enjoy to the fullest her desire for alien corpses.

"Archangel 2, I'll watch your back so keep up the ratio."

"HAHAHA! I'll KILL EVERY LAST ONE of YOU!" A fascinating sideways dash was followed by a deadly yet beautiful carve of her sword. Sumika waved her PB-blade in an arc followed by red fluid covered her Fubuki.

"Archangel 2, you copy?" I called out again since Sumika failed to reply the first time.

"HAHAAAAH— Ah, thanks, Takeru-chan!" I left Sumika to her own device as the cold edge of her sword slashed monsters the size of buildings to bits. Whether this was healthy or not, the potency of Sumika's rampage was an undeniable asset.

"YOU RIFFRAFF! ALL OF YOU! DIE, DIEDIEDIE!" A wicked, yet breathtaking smile beamed across her distorted features. A silence scream mixed with lunatic laughter echoed within Sumika's cockpit.

Two Grappler-class fell under her murderous blade before she reached behind to grab another saber, Sumika already switched target to the group of four Destroyers that flanked her. Administering her Boost Units to full effect, her Type-97 spun beautifully around the first Destroyer while dodging its charge and adding her stab in its place.

Next, two Destroyers on her opposite sides both rushed at amazing speed in an attempt to crush her still frame. What they didn't foresee was for Sumika to jump up at the last second causing the duo of aliens to crash each other head on, Sumika temporary stood on top of their hard shells for only a brief second. But that segment of time was all she required to switch her PB-Blades into reverse grip and spear down the BETA deep in their unprotected rears.

"HAHAHA! You IDIOTS!"

The fourth and final Destroyer-class was not smart enough to notice the deadly aura surrounding Sumika and gunned for her all the same. As one would expect, it was put down mercilessly by two clean cuts from behind.

"Don't get your DISGUSTING blood OVER ME! YOU MUTTS!" Jumping away before the blood could spray over her machine, Sumika quickly swiped off her swords and geared up with guns of the fallen instead.

—

"This is Archangel 3 to Archangel 4, incoming grappler. Move five metres to your left in three seconds."

"Archangel 4, r-roger that!"

"Archangel 7, avoid that group running for you! A quick jump up and stay in air for twelve seconds!"

"C-copy that! Thanks, leader."

"Support team concentrate your fire by my designation, shoot to the right of those buildings!"

"Understood!"

—

One way or another, the fierce battle continued with no end in reach. No matter how many of those bugs we cut, shoot or just simply kill off, they were still somehow pulling reinforcements out of their ass.

"—HQ to Archangel 1. Saturation bombing in twenty seconds. Clear your team from Area 2." Finally, a ray of hope shined upon my team in the shape of ordnance from Headquarters.

"—Negative, HQ. They got Laser-class back there. Hit our exact coordinates!" If we were dropping bombs, got to make sure they are adequate.

"HQ copy that, retreat to Area 3."

"—Archangel 1 to all units, pull back! This place will be bombed in twenty!"

"—Copy!" I was missing a reply from one of my member.

" _Sumika! Get your dumb butt out of there now!_ " My mental message seemed to pull Sumika out of her trace.

"HUU— Ah, are we done already? There're still so much BETA to kill here!" Putting Sumika on an encrypted channel was absolutely a good idea.

"Yeah, we're done! Leave the rest for our bombs!"

"Uuun, but… but there're still so much of them left!"

"My orders, Sumika. We're going. NOW." Her reluctance to withdraw forced out my demanding attitude.

"Er— Archangel 2, copy. Pulling back." Sumika hauled herself together after replying like her normal self.

I sliced another Grappler in half before surfacing to a safe distance along with my teammates. At the same time we were evacuated the sense, a disabled Gekishin caught my attention when its IFF tag reactivated. The possibility of a stranded soul forced my hand and reversed my heading.

"You gotta be kidding me. —Archangel 1 here, all units just keep going. I'll catch up." I inverted my boost system and dashed back toward the downed TSF.

—

"Hey you! Are you still alive in there!?" I ripped open the armour outside the frame to reveal an Eishi inside.

"AHHAA! You're… you gotta help me here!"

"What do you think I'm trying to do!? Your TSF is only scrap now! Hurry up and get out!" My robot arm reached down and torn up another hole big enough for the pilot to exit.

"Just climb on the arm! We don't have time to put you in my cockpit!" I grabbed her body as gently as a twenty meter android was capable of. With careful movements and well-timed jumps, we seemed to be clear from the blast zone in another ten seconds.

"Ahhhaa. Thanks for your help—"

"Don't talk, stupid! You could bite your own tongue here!" My travel speed was greatly limited thanks to the extra passenger aboard. I could only float my frame without putting my famous maneuvers to action.

"—HQ to all units in Area 2. Commencing Saturation bombing in 3… 2… 1… Confirming effectiveness." Surges of heat and debris chased my back as I narrowly avoided the kill-zone.

The BETA just behind me was either lit up or blown into smithereens. However, that was only speaking for their vanguard. The Laser-class that emerged out of the blue shot down all missiles aimed toward the back of Area 2.

"Archangel 1 to HQ. Their front line just collapsed but the Laser-class behind there are shooting down all the artilleries."

"—HQ copy. Next bombardment will not be effective until the Laser-class are cleared out." Under the cover fire from my squad. I regrouped with them who was waiting for me outside Area 3.

"Alright, Second Lieutenant. Switch seat with me here and pilot the Fubuki." The cockpit hatch opened for me to climb out.

"EH? But what'll you use?"

"Don't worry, I got my frame right here." The black YF-23 pulled up beside me and reached out its mechanical arm. Without a beat behind, I opened up my cockpit and ran along the left limb of my Fubuki.

"Eh…? Is that your Raptor, Captain?!" I leaped over to the YF-23's hand and remotely unlocked the entry into the control.

"Yup! Just take that Fubuki and regroup with your flight! It's got the XM3 installed so be ready for that." The female Eishi hesitantly slid into my old seat.

"So you're the Phantom—"

"Don't be bringing that up now! Just getting going already!" The nickname alone was embarrassing enough. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to sack the guy that came up with this crap.

"Thank you, Captain! Thank you very much!" My Type-97 flew off into the distance carrying a life that I salvaged from this chaos.

"—HQ to all units. Additional BETA forces are detected underneath Area 1. All units pull back to Area 3 and Hanger 7." Another flood of BETA burst of from under the curst and engaged Cracker and Storm Flight when they withdrew again for Area 1.

"Damn it! We're just on the run like this! You girls all doing okay back there?"

"This is Archangel 2! No problems!"

"Archangel 3, nothing wrong."

"…Archangel 4, I'm… okay…"

"Archangel 5, no problems."

"T-t-this is Archangel 6! They're really scary but I'm f-fine!"

"Archangel 7… hanging on."

"Ahha… t-this is Archangel 8, I'm good!" Everyone's vitals were clearly shaken up, but it wasn't severe enough for any hypnosis hint. To be honest, they fared quite well considering this was their first ever engagement against the BETA, hopefully the time during the coup helped their piloting abilities.

"Archangel Company will fall back to Area 3 and delay all BETA advances. Don't go any further or the Laser-class will fry your ass!"

"Copy that!" My team moved as one, we temporary fled the field for a better chance at counterattacking.

—

"—damn it! There's just too many of them!"

"—Cracker 1 to HQ! We need supply by Area 3! They're swarming us!"

"We need reinforcements!" The aliens from Area 2 were pouring into Area 3 by the hundreds. Support would be highly appreciated at any time, currently.

"—damn, does she not have a watch or something? I didn't hand over my XM3 for it to collect dust." I muttered under my breath about the unwelcomed delay.

"—this is Blood 1 of the Imperial Royal Guard. Here to reinforce Area 3." She was late. Even if she appeared right when I called, I called late.

Four Type-00s flew to our sides in fashion, not even taking a second off; their hot metal rained down upon the closest of the BETA.

"Welcome, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. I don't have time to cracks jokes right now so just shoot at anything that moves, except for us; don't shoot us." With an entertained snort from Tsukuyomi, the squad of Takemikazuchis took forward position against the charging BETA and let loose their ammo.

Their support evened the odds for our side. Yet, as if the BETA had immeasurable numbers, those monsters charged with absolutely no intention to slow down. My American assault rifle was empty after continuous fire for so long that I couldn't recall. With no way of resupplying a weapon that wasn't even supposed to be here, I pulled by sword in an offensive rush.

"I see that you are still operating that American F-22A, Capt. Shirogane." An effort at small talk reached my ears above all the shouting and yelling in the comms from everyone around us, with this conversation started by Tsukuyomi, no less.

"It's an YF-23, not a Raptor, okay? Besides, this champ serves me better than the training units we have here." I sliced through multiple Grappler-class as I kept the chitchat going.

"Is that so? I do not care much for the difference myself." That was pure salt down my throat.

"Ahha, my feelings, Tsukuyomi. I shall let you know that this machine is the best, ever."

"Humph, preposterous. Takemikazuchi cannot be beaten by a mere machine from the States." She really, seriously forgot how she got knocked the fuck out during the coup.

"Then why did it take your team so long to reach here?"

"Hehe… that is quite the cas— Blood 2! Watch your four!" Halfway through our conversation, a sudden gang of Destroyers ambushed Kamiyo of the Imperial Guards. She dodged the first wave and maneuvered around four Destroyers but was blind to the second push by another five.

"Hu— Aha!" Her frame stalled when she was about to land. It appeared that Tsukuyomi didn't distribute the XM3 to the rest of her Platoon. It would be quite ironic if someone from the Honour Guard was too lose their life due to that silly mistake.

Fortunately, another Takemikazuchi, one painted in the Shogun's colour. Shot the BETA dead with pinpoint accuracy, saving one of the three idiots in the process.

"Kamiyo. You have been careless, are you alright?" The actual frame carrying Meiya paralleled itself beside the Type-00.

"Ah… Meiya-sama! My apology! And thank you very much!"

"Now is not the time for gratitude nor pardon. Pay attention in the battle instead!"

"Yes, ma'am!"

—

"HQ to all units. Artillery fire is unavailable due to the Laser-class BETA in Area 2. Another BETA Battalion is detected to be heading for Hanger 27." There really was a countless quantity of these bitches.

"Archangel 1 to HQ! My squadron will take out the Laser-class BETA!"

"Negative, Archangel 1. Your team is to hold the line and prevent the enemy from reaching Hanger 37. The personals on site have yet to evacuate." My request was denied for a good reason.

"—this is Valkyries 1 to HQ. I'll take my team and silence the Laser-class." Captain Isumi finally decided to join the party as well.

It was seven Shiranuis with the Valkyries emblem that rushed out from our side and pushed on in full force.

"Then I'll go along. I don't have any bullets left here. 1st. Lt. Tsukuyomi, take over command for me." Seeing the empty sign of my weapon, I thought up the best method to please everyone.

"Blood 1, copy that. Blood Flight and Archangel Squadron will hold the defense line." Tsukuyomi was kind enough to answer my demand.

"HQ all copy. Artillery support will target Area 2 and 3 after the Laser-class are eliminated."

—

"Someone give me a gun! One of the gun sweepers!"

"Ah, here, Captain!" Akane tossed me a rifle which I intercepted in midair. I couldn't ask my team for weaponry since we all only had a few guns with little ammo.

"Valkyries 1 to all units. Formation Arrowhead 1, we'll push to the left of Area 2 and flank the Laser-class from behind. There also could be other BETA strains around so don't let your guard down!"

"What about Shiroga— Capt. Shirogane? He just tagged along without his team!" Hayase may have only stated the truth, but somehow it still felt like an insult.

"I'm the wildcard here. I'm gonna steal everyone's kills. But mostly yours, Hayase."

"You challenging me, Capt. Shirogane!? Because I'll definitely accept!" While the argument was hot and alive between the MVPs, the rest of the Squad had already engaged the BETA forces.

"Yeah, I'll take you on. Hayase! Someone give me a sword!"

"Here, take mine. Capt. Shirogane. I'm secretly rooting for you. Be careful with Hayase these days, her sexual frustration is piling up since we lost our last battle." Munakata lobed her PB-blade my way while also throwing in a good joke for free.

"Thanks, Munakata. Let's go Laserjagding! By the way, is that a word?" Apparently Laserjagd means "Laser hunt" in German, not too sure how it translate to a verb, though.

"MU-NA-KA-TA! I'm going to get you later!" With that, the Vanguards charged head-first amongst the BETA Regiment.

—

'Come on! One… two… three… four… five… and… six.' The body of six Laser-class laid behind the path I just took.

We had pushed into their base and were killing all of their dudes, two Destroyer-class rounded the debris and met the deadly side of my blade without mercy.

"Ahh! Shirogane! Those are my guys!" A shout came from Hayase after I threw my sword at the last Heavy Laser-class remaining in a group of five.

"What're you talking about now!? I clearly cleaved that guy before you got to it." I drew the sword out of the corpse of the BETA before turning around and shoot another cluster of Grappler-class.

"Ahhaa! Damn you and your kill stealing!"

"Hahaha! I'm stealing Hayase's kills!" That was just too priceless for me to keep quiet.

—

"—that's the last one! Out of my way, Hayase!"

"—in your dreams, Shirogane! This is going to be the tie-breaker for us!" The final Heavy Laser-class that hid in an unnoticed corner was the last BETA left in Area 2. Also the only BETA that was left from its Division.

Both our guns were out of munitions long ago and our swords scared with marks of obliteration suffered by the BETA army. My final two weapons were the mounted dagger on my rifle and the last combat dagger I equipped from my arm sheaths. Hayase was sprinting full speed with half a sword.

"Your ass is mine!"

"Gonna fry you to the moon!"

We raced for the final kill on the Lux as it fired its puny laser in its final fruitless attempt to desperately attack us. Using the corpses and ruins around us as cover, both Hayase and I avoided its lethal eye-beam.

I spun my dagger and gripped it again with my fingers on the spine of this knife, a powerful and precise throw landed the blade right in the creature's eye. Hayase used her Jump Unit to close the gap instantly and stabbed her broken sword hard into the flesh on the side of the Magnus Lux. I finished the life of this alien monster with a final strike as I pierced the eye again with my bayonet.

"—that's it! We clear! Repeat, all clear!" Both Hayase and I shouted in our comms at around the same time.

"—this is Valkyries 1 to HQ. All Laser-class dispatched. You're clear for bombing."

"—HQ copy that. Saturation artillery strike will be delivered in thirty seconds. All TSFs clear Training Area 1, 2 and 3 immediately." The longest half a minute of the day was slowly ticking down as our squad withdrew from the frontline that was covered in BETA cadavers.

—

"Impact in 3… 2… 1… confirming effect." It didn't take a prodigy to observe the repercussion of the bombing attack. With their significant Laser-class already dead and ready to be buried, the rest of the BETA army suffered complete and total annihilation under the bombardment of our ordnance.

—

"—alright, good game everyone!" This could very much be the wrong way to approve an aftermath.

"—what are the scores? Anybody keeping track?"

"—what the hell do you two think you're doing…?" Captain Isumi was very judgemental about my after-action celebration with Hayase. After most of the aliens got their asses handed to them by a long range artillery raid, the order was updated to search and destroy any remaining survivors.

"—I actually kept count, wanna listen?" Two voices concurred to Munakata's suggestion.

"Let's take a look here… Hayase got the most kills during this with around 340 confirmed. Out of that is about 20 Laser-class and the rest are grapplers and destroyers. Shirogane got somewhere around 320 with about 30 Laser-class. But we should also remember that he saved the life of 2nd Lt. Tsukiji, can you second that, Second Lieutenant?" It was to everyone's surprise that Munakata was secretly quite proficient as an announcer of sorts.

"Eerrr…? Ah, yes! Capt. Shirogane saved me from a group of Tank-class that almost got me!"

"With our objective of removing all Laser-class in mind, and Capt. Shirogane's noble act of rescuing an Eishi in need. I think it's fine to say that if there was a match here, Capt. Shirogane is the winner with Hayase close in second." Some very lackluster applause of confusion spread through our comms.

"Nice! I'm the best!"

"Damn it, Shirogane! If only you didn't steal my Laser-class…"

"Ahaa… aren't you two enjoying yourselves?" The most obvious disapproval came from Isumi's dumbstruck sigh.

"Hahaha. Sorry, Isumi. We'll stop now."

"Thank you, Shirogane. —this is Valkyries 1, all units continue patrolling Area 2 and 3. Report and destroy any remaining BETA forces. Thank you for your assistance, Capt. Shirogane. Feel free to return to your squadron now."

"No problem, Valkyries. I'll catch you all later."

 **Area 1**

"—this is Archangel 8 to Archangel 1. Patrol pattern Delta complete."

"—nicely done, Archangel 8. Move on to the next monitor location."

Three hours, three hours have passed since DEFCON 1 was lifted and all base personnel were free from lockdown. It was our absolute conquest over the BETA army. With our casualty limited to only single digits, this was the textbook example of a crushing victory.

Time was 4:50 PM, the afternoon sun painted our battlefield in shades of twilight. With the dusk of this day almost upon the Eishis who fought with their lives on the line. I stood my Arondight at an all too familiar spot, the one site that marked my first my biggest mistake, failure and regret. My team was still traversing the combat zone, searching for any leftover BETAs that weren't burnt to a crisp along with the rest of their filthy species.

"—Archangel 1 to all units. I'll be exiting my TSF for a little while. Archangel 2 will take over." The right time will never arrive, so there was nothing wrong with me taking the initiative.

"—Archangel 2, copy. Just be safe, okay, Takeru-chan?" Sumika probably knew my course of action, still she had no reason to stop me now.

"Roger that, exiting now." The metal door slid open for me to climb out of my cockpit and rope down to the ground.

—

'I know it's here somewhere…' My intention was clear to me alone. This might be another worthless act in the eyes of others. Yet to me, this history must be replaced no matter the cost.

My pistol was held in one hand with the other pointing a flashlight in the direction of my sight. The ruins around me enclosed my pathway, making it narrow and restrictive the more I traversed down this lane. It wasn't until fifty metres later that the space broadened up for me to catch some glimpses of the nightfall sky.

"So you're here, after all." The linear trail eventually led me to a crack between two buildings that survived the artillery. This was the final destination that I sought, within it was the very first creature that was forcefully implanted into my memory before my very eyes.

"I don't need this to kill you." My 9mm was tossed to the side with my combat knife replacing its old spot in my right grip. And I told myself this blade will be put to very good use right now.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Author's note**

Here you go, a long chapter just how you all liked them; or you didn't, and then it could be a problem. I surely thought about cutting this chapter in two but that would disrupt the flow, like a lot.

So hopefully you all liked this chapter, this is pretty much the end of the Yokohama Base Incident arc, one more chapter then we're officially done with canon for a short while. After this is the TE Arc, which is half-way done so that's good.

My writing has been slowing down due to 90 percent video games and 10 percent study. Playing a lot of Destiny these days, going to pick up some more games during Christmas and all. Then again, why am I telling you this? Nobody cares.

Thanks to everyone who favourited, followed and reviewed this fic, your support is greatly appreciated. I'm fully intending for this story to be among the famous ones of the Muv-Luv archive and I couldn't do this without your help.

So if you have any questions regarding the story, review or PM me and I'll either reply or address it in the next chapter. Oh, yeah, also favourite and follow if you haven't done so already, all that self-advertising stuff too, can't forget them.

BETA done by chad001, if you have a problem with I using I all over mine place, come get I.


	20. Slacking days

**Jinguuji Marimo**

 **December 10, 2001**

 **Hiiragi ruins**

It was indeed unusual for Jinguuji to just wander out of the base with no arrangements in mind, she was worried about her old training squad that was rumoured to have stood face to face against the extraterrestrial being that envenomed this earth.

Jinguuji heard that Capt. Shirogane led the newly formed Special Task Force into battle when the unexpected BETA attack swarmed Area 2. No one had foreseen this accident, it was beyond everyone's wildest dreams that this base, Yokohama Base would so suddenly be assaulted by BETA without any warning. So it was even more remarkable that they were dealt so swiftly with very little loss of life on the side of the soldiers.

"—ah! Instruct— Sergeant Jinguuji!" A UN Fubuki surfaced itself to the side of Jinguuji. She instantly recognized the voice to belong the second shortest (but flattest) member of the 13th squad, Yoroi Mikoto.

"2nd Lt. Yoroi. Are you still on patrol? DEFCON 1 has already been lifted, most Eishis were ordered to return to base."

"Yes, but we're told to continue guarding this area until told otherwise. It was Captain Takeru's direct order!" The outward speaker transmitted Yoroi's explanation loudly.

"Really? That's quite abnormal for Capt. Shirogane to ask the squad of that."

"We thought so too, but Takeru was very serious and wasn't willing to back down at all! Thanks to that, we still haven't gotten any chance to rest." Jinguuji was getting more and more concerned for the cause behind Capt. Shirogane's instruction.

"Do you know where he is?"

"Takeru left his TSF about ten minutes ago. We don't know where he went right now, his frame is right there though." The giant machine pointed its finger toward the shadow of another fighter crouched behind some wrecks.

"Did he have a reason for leaving?"

"He didn't say anything at all, Takeru just suddenly got up and left."

"Alright, thank you, Second Lieutenant." Jinguuji bid her farewell to the fresh Eishi and went to investigate the leader of her old cadets.

—

The dirt above the ground marked a single pair of footsteps further into the ruins. After some inner-debate, Jinguuji chose to follow the passageway in her attempt to locate Capt. Shirogane.

The walls corralled in on her as if it wished to squash her between two hard surfaces, yet at the end of this man-made and alien-wrecked tunnel was a small gap that appeared to lead to a more open area.

Before Jinguuji could cross the border, she overheard some unnatural noises. The sound that resonated was a faint, but rather disturbing one. It mostly resembled the tumult of meat and flesh being ripped apart, commonly done by the monstrosities known as BETA.

Jinguuji instantly drew her sidearm in preparation for an incoming attack. However, when no said assault took place, she was again hesitant about continuing her exploration.

"Sitting here won't do any good…" Jinguuji quietly whispered some facts to herself before making up her mind and navigated to the other side of the small breach between destroyed buildings.

—

"…Captain?" What Jinguuji witnessed wasn't the brutality she came to expect from the BETA or the traumatic death of another human. It was still a brutal beat down, nonetheless.

"…What… are you doing…? Captain…?"

For some individuals, the scene that was apparent before her might not even be viewed as a picture of violence. A lone young man sat casually by himself, beside him was a pile of meat that used to be human's most hated enemy. His back was facing Jinguuji, within his hands held a piece of blade stained with the red blood of what should be a Soldier-class; now only served to be a very ineffective wiper for the young hero's knife.

"…Marimo-chan… well, this is quite awkward." Even in this setting of disgusting war, the Captain still held his prideful look and playful smirk when he turned about to face her.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hiiragi ruins**

The jaw of the Soldier-class was surprisingly weak, or maybe I was just too good for it.

"Come on, bitch. Bite me! DO IT!" Our short dance was cut even shorter once my patience ran out.

"What? You can chew off her head, but my arm is too much for you?" Of course, I understood the BETA couldn't close its jaw not because my arm was in its mouth, but due to the metal pipe stuck in between its teeth. The rod was at a perfect length for holding open its mouth and sturdy enough to keep it open.

"If you can't even kill a single person. Then what does that mean for me? Am I someone who couldn't even protect a single person from a weak ass alien like you?" The knife stabbed in its maw was twisted at will as the Soldier-class only let out cries of what should be assumed in agony.

 _Come on, say something!_ I tried communication with ESP to no avail.

"You fuck, how unproductive can we get here? Just fucking die already." My blade was pulled out of the creature's mouth with warp speed and stabbed as hard as possible into the top of its flesh multiple times, where I supposed the head should be.

A revolting scream later, the BETA carcass flopped limply onto the cold surface below me. Even with its life completely drained from the body, I was still repulsed with its appearance as the gore almost caught my suit on its way down.

"Ahh… how anticlimactic." Now that the dead alien was by my side, I decided to sit down and clean my knife with its white flesh. Watching the creature's skin not absorb its own blood served to remind me how utterly useless this BETA was.

This ninja BETA was probably surprised when it first noticed me by the sound of metal hitting ground, if BETA could be surprised, that is. The hateful stare I shot this monster went completely unanswered as I didn't even know if that thing's eyes worked as intended.

Still, I wanted a fight so I was getting a fight. A little while later the BETA finally remembered to attack me, then with its walking on its weird legs and dragging its fat ass, the Soldier-class nudged toward me no faster than a regular sprinter. With its mouth wide open and arms outstretched, my hatred burned within my heart as I sensed my feet ready to move at a moment's notice.

But apparently, all my preparation was for naught.

I was clearly disappointed by its display of incapability when the creature reached out its hands in slow-motion for me to dodge casually to the side. Seeing that it missed, this ugly alien turned and extended for my body once more, then it missed again, and again. That happened for a couple of times until I got bored, seriously bored by how totally unbelievably weak it was.

So while shouting a few insults that I couldn't remember and it couldn't understand, I punched its hideous face a few times to miniature effect. The bug got hard skin, I'll give it that much.

Following that, we hopped around for a bit; I stopped punching its face because for some reason, this weak bitch was still taller than me. Now that I think about it, maybe I could ride on its back if I had a saddle? Could be fun, if nothing else.

In conclusion, I eventually got tired of playing and put the monster down for good, which brings us back to now.

—

"…You sickening shit… hiding in a hole like a cowardly bitch until the fighting ended. Just to take a bite out of…" She didn't deserve to go out like that. Marimo-chan was a caring instructor and a brave soldier.

"If she were to die… she should be out there, on the frontline, defending and protecting this world from you aliens. Not be snuck up on by a single BETA… she was cheering for me that time. It all happened so quickly too…"

This was atypical even for someone who underwent thousands if not millions of the same timeline. I saved Marimo-chan more times than necessary for me to count. And yet, my mind wouldn't let go of that single failure that was the result of my own inability.

"Goddamn it…"

—

"So then… what're you doing here, Sergeant?" Finally noticing Marimo-chan in the corner with her gun primed, I called out to her in my most relaxing manner possible.

"I just came looking for you, Captain." The military in Marimo-chan answered me instinctively.

"Now that you found me, what would you like?"

"Ahh… no, I just came because your squad is still on patrol."

"Right, I'm finished here so let's get going." Marimo-chan must be very confused by all this. On the other hand, I was literally just done recalling the events.

"Captain, wait! Can I just ask the reason you're here?"

"I was tracking down a Soldier-class, that's all." Retrieving the pistol I threw to the side earlier, my feet were already bringing me out of this depressing place.

"Without your gun, sir?"

"I wanted to see how good I am. I'm very good, by the way." My dry laugh wasn't enough to convince Marimo-chan of the condition.

"Captain… please, if you want to, come and talk with me okay?"

"Yeah, sure. But let's just get out of here."

 **Jinguuji Marimo**

 **Outside Hiiragi ruins**

The American TSF flew en route to the Yokohama Base hanger along with the rest of the company under the command of its Captain. Jinguuji was riding alone aboard the jeep that she drove out earlier this day. Within the labyrinth of her mind, she couldn't help but recall the many instants between her and the very talented leader superior of the 13th Squadron.

The way he calmly reported his takedown of a BETA Soldier-class with perfect fighting skills was still quite vivid within Jinguuji's mind. Sure, the BETA was and still is the most hated creature of all time on this earth and Jinguuji felt no remorse for the alien itself.

It was the pure tranquility and composure of his execution that bothered Jinguuji to great depth. The rank of Sergeant meant she was somewhat limited in her options of confronting Shirogane. She could report his behaviour today to the Vice-Commander, but her sixth-sense was warning her to abandon that idea before anything dangerous could actually take place.

"Shirogane Takeru…" Jinguuji unconsciously murmured the name of her most special cadet.

At first, Shirogane appeared to be so amazing that even she doubted his origin as a human. The image of a boy who disregarded his draft exempt to join humanity's fight against their nemesis was blown away without any trace when he showed astounding talent in all form of combat. While still carrying around a loose character, he secretly bore the burden of every tragedy and the result of every decision.

Jinguuji wanted to believe that the being who covered himself in an aura of confidence and pride was just a regular man behind the mask. Much like her old high-school classmate, she could easily identify the equivalence between Yuuko and Shirogane.

Both of them put on a cold façade for their audience and at the same time, hid all of their pain and suffering under the counter so no one would suspect their abilities. It was as if fate itself had picked those two to be tragic heroes of their time, to suffer for the masses and save this world while sacrificing themselves.

'…Is there… nothing…?' Jinguuji always wished to be of assistance to her friend on this base. However, Yuuko's research was the furthest away from Jinguuji's own field of expertise. Likewise, Shirogane was a soldier that will be sent to the frontlines without break until his expiration date finally welcomes the young Eishi.

Even so, Jinguuji was determined to help out those two in any way she can. Maybe there's nothing for her to achieve at this moment, but eventually Jinguuji believed that she could be of support for her two friends.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hanger**

"Alright, gather up team! I'm going to make some announcements like the good squad leader I am so pay attention!" The last one to congregate was Tama, since her TSF was parked the furthest away.

After I fought a Soldier-class mano-a-mano like a total badass and embarked my TSF again, the team got their permission to return back to the hanger. They were all tired to a certain degree but it was nothing they hadn't geared up for by now.

"So, how's everyone one doing?" No response was observed for fifteen seconds after my question.

"…I believe… we did quite well today, did we not?" The first reply came from Meiya.

"True that. We fought for almost an hour on the field today. Everyone must be tired after all that intense moments. The panic, the fear and the confusion all have settled right now. So tell me, how do you all feel about your first real combat situation?"

"…It was so, so, so SOOoO scary!" Mikoto took the first place in expressing herself.

"T-that's right! It's all thanks to Takeru-san's calm orders that I didn't get too nervous and actually remembered the training!"

"I was really shocked by the destructive abilities of the BETA. I can't imagine what would happen if Takeru wasn't the one in command."

"The adrenaline rush… super real." As expected, my team was still scared by the BETA. Luckily, our total victory brought them some reassurance.

"That's good, you all should get used to this fighting, as that is our lives from now on. Still, your performance today deserves praise and that's what I'll be delivering. Get yourselves cleaned up and gather by the PX. That's it, Archangels, dismissed."

"Yes, sir."

 **PX**

"Welcome, my squad mates! This is for all of you." Being the first to arrive at the PX gave me the required time to bring out my preparations.

"…What?" It was upsetting no one understood the meaning of the glasses I set up.

Before the seven girls laid a nicely decorated table covered by a piece of cloth. The stripe spotted fabric held eight sets of elegant glasses about ten centimetres high, along with some other simple dinning tools such as forks and spoons.

"What're you making us do, Takeru-chan?"

"Do none of you know what this is?" Everyone shook their heads horizontally as the gesture for deny.

"Shot glasses." The only sign of intelligence came from Kasumi.

"There you go. Clever girl, Kasumi!" I patted her head with emphasis on her comprehension, she shook around like a true rabbit in disguise.

"Of course we knew that these cups are! My question is why did you bring them out in the first place?"

"For drinking… obviously." It must be unfortunate for Class rep if she couldn't fathom my intention as I mocked her.

"Ahha? Aren't we underage for alcohol? The law stated that no one under the age of 20 can drink or smoke." It was priceless to see Class rep uphold such regulation in a world where children were sent to fight man-eating aliens.

"…Class rep… too young too simple."

"For you to be this strict… my apologies, Sakaki."

"Chizuru-san, I'm sorry but no one follow those laws anymore." Some brutal shutdowns caused Class rep to retreat back into her mental shell.

"Ahha… I don't even care…" Class rep sighed as she wiped her face repeatedly.

"Anyway, to celebrate the survival of our very first real battle. I thought you all would appreciate some fine liquor for this occasion. You can also view this as a celebration for our graduation, which would also be appropriate."

"Realllly!? Yaay!" Mikoto clearly approves of my method of celebration, or she just really wanted to try some drinking.

"Awwwa… this'll be my first time drinking alcohol…! I feel so mature now!" Tama must also be excited to join the adults.

"You all will be big girls from now on! Let's get started, I'll bring out the food as well."

—

Every cup in front of my team was filled with sake, for the first round we decided to have something light to ease in the mood.

"Now if you would, Takeru." After Ayamine poured the drinks, we all raised our cups high into the air.

"Yes… now then, as the commander of the Special Task Force 13th Squad, the Archangels. I would like to congratulate everyone for graduating and surviving our very first battle with an amazing Kill-death ratio and zero losses."

"Others might say that this kind of result only happens once a blue moon. And they would been right, until now. As the elite of the UN, nope, the elite of this planet. We will continue that record until all alien creatures are exterminated from this earth. To the world, to the Archangel!"

"Cheers!" Eight shot glasses clashed together as the liquid flowed within the cup. We all swallowed our very first liquor simultaneously as a team that will overcome the future.

"Whaaaa! That felt great! Takeru-chan! Let me pour another one!"

"Shut up, woman! That's not how this drink works!"

"Owieee!" I batted down Sumika's attempt at a refill, this dumb girl reached out for my bottle with zero manner.

"How was it, Kasumi?" After sending Sumika packing, I switched attention to Kasumi whose still emotionless as always.

"It tasted like vodka, but weaker."

"EHH?! K-Kasumi-san had vodka before?" News to my ears likewise.

"Yes." Now that she mentioned it, this triggered a bit of my memory from the past when I force fed her some vodka just to see Kasumi drunk… it's only illegal if I get caught, right?

"Uwaaa~ that was great!"

"Indeed! Takeru! Bring another!" Slamming down her cup shortly after Mikoto, Meiya and the rest all demanded a refill.

"Alright! More coming up!"

—

"We all enjoying the drinks, right?" I got collective nods from the table of girls.

"The alcohol runs smoothly down one's throat, not too heavy and not too weak. You have my praise for this fine selection of drinks, Takeru."

"Nice, glad you like it, Meiya." With a pleasant grin, Meiya downed another cup.

"I have a question, Takeru. Is it alright… for us too, you know… drink all this expensive liquor? Actually, where do you even get the money for all this?"

"Actually, I must say I am interested similarly." Meiya charmed in after Class rep asked first.

"Nah, I'm rich!" I shut down Class rep's question with one line.

"That is like… so not responsible."

"Factual, Sakaki. Takeru has no sense of earnest even in this age." I only laughed at those names they called me.

"Ahaa… how I wish my countrymen could also enjoy this luxury together. However, this is a reward from Takeru and I shall not dwindle its value." Announced Meiya in a poetic fashion after she drank another shot.

The members of my Company were thoroughly enjoying their prize. It was a good moment of victory for all of us, a needed victory. They had to be ready for the fight, yet not despair when the unforgiving reality homed in to strike down their pride.

"Hey, team. Attention here, I actually have something to say." The girls lowered their voices and turned to me immediately. Each of them silent as could be, concentrating on my impending words.

"All of you are Eishis who survived the eight minutes of death while fighting in one of the most difficult battle, why do you think that is?" After a few seconds of quietness, Mikoto raised her hand to speak.

"Is it not because your excellent commanding skills, Takeru?"

"Sure, I can say that. But that's not really all true now. As I said before, all you girls are special, extremely special at that." The soldiers all focused in on me as I stated.

"Now I don't know if you remember this or not, when Marimo-chan was still our instructor, she talked about what determines who lives and who dies, right? Why don't we review that again? Let's pick on you first, Class rep." It was a classic lesson I will teach them, a lesson one must find within heart in order to face true terror.

"Um… I think it is the will to fulfill one's objective." Classic answer, as expected of Class rep. Her personality that took everything with utmost seriousness will be a great advantage on the battlefield.

"How about you, Meiya?"

"I believe it to be the skill of the Eishi." Meiya's ability to control a TSF was second to only us the time-travellers, after all.

"Tama?"

"Err… the strength of the Eishi's mind is very important, right?" A cheerful answer from a strong girl.

"Ke— Ayamine then."

"…I think it's piloting skills." Coming from Ayamine whose belief was very pertinent to herself, this was also not a shock.

"Mikoto."

"I think it's the Eishi's decision-making. If we're on the battlefield, a little misstep can doom everything, right? So a strong will to make snap decisions is very important." Mikoto's mental capability was also high above many.

"Huhu, how about you, Kasumi?"

"Piloting skills." Her answer was not a surprise, unlike when I first realized Kasumi's superb skills at controlling her frame.

"Sumika, what you think?"

"A strong will is very important! With the right mindset, we can do anything!" Her answer may sound foolish, but she herself never doubted that creed.

"I see, so Class rep, Tama, Mikoto and Sumika values the mental side while Meiya, Ayamine and Kasumi think actual skill is more valuable. Hehe, quite interesting."

"What about you, Takeru-chan? What is more vital to you?"

"Huh? Obviously both." I saw multiple attempts at faceplam after publicizing my thoughts.

"Look, it's like when a kid has to pick between two gifts. Why not just take both?"

"This is… I cannot say I did not foresee that coming." With a light smirk, Meiya shot me a friendly gaze.

"Exactly, my point is that both are very essential for an Eishi, especially the eight of us. We need both a strong resolve and amazing piloting skills to survive the upcoming war." They all slightly nodded at me as I continued.

"Your resolution will become your strength as you fight for your ideals. And your mastery in combat will in turn grant you the ability you need to success. Both are paramount, because both are the same thing. To strive for victory means to grasp any and every source of strength you will come upon, since you'll need to be as powerful as an Eishi can be."

These teachings were forever printed in my head through years of failure and regret. I came to a point where I have nothing else to lose, yet at the same time everything I own was on the line.

"Such wise words… Takeru truly is a man worthy of his achievements."

"Capt. Takeru… so cool."

"I completely understand those words, thank you, Takeru."

"Ahh, Miki also knows what you mean, Takeru-san!"

"This is like wiseman of the mountain wisdom!" I shall properly totally ignore Mikoto's comment.

"Now your piloting skills will be trained painstakingly during our training sessions almost every day from now on. So let's work on some of that determination. I'm by no means an expert in finding a foolproof way of decoding a person's heart, everyone thinks differently and there really isn't a solid answer to all your problems."

"With that said, I have confidence that when we as Eishis, have a clear goal in mind, a sense of duty empowers us and strengthens our resolve. So let's think of three things that we want to achieve, make it two personal ones and one general topic." Once the girls understood my meaning, they searched within their minds for the most suiting answer.

"Guess it is hard to say this in front of others, huh? People don't even need to know what you mean, you just need to have one; I think that's what's most important. I'll go first while everyone considers theirs. Hurmm…" I said that, turned out the time-traveller also needed some time as well.

"Alright, I got it. I want to protect this world and all of humanity." I may have lost sight of that aim before, but what I lost I found.

"I want to protect all of you in my team." Some members blushed a little hearing that.

"And I want to lead humanity to victory, one day." That was no doubt an ambitious dream, still I had more than enough motivation to achieve it.

"Huhu, that is just like you. I shall state mine next: I wish to protect this country, the people of this land."

"I wish to protect this team, protect those that will fight alongside me."

"Finally, I wish to find myself. An identity that belongs to me alone." A brave goal for a brave girl, Meiya was all that. Never once giving herself to others, never once taking the wrong path.

For some time, nobody was brave enough to speak their thoughts. It was obviously natural this squad filled with highly influential connections would have some trouble talking about their dreams.

"…No one, huh? Guess I'll go next: I want to protect this country as well, this tomorrow of Japan… the tomorrow my father works to keep safe for the people…"

"I want to succeed my missions, together with my teammates."

"Also, I want to one day… become a politician, maybe after all this war… ends."

It was a difficult life Class rep endured; her mother died when she was young, her father fought hard for this country and sacrificed precious time he could have spent was his daughter. Nevertheless, the Prime Minister was alive and well, and as long as people live, things can change for the better.

"I want to protect this nation as well… same as my dad." It was the raven haired daughter of a General that spoke next.

"…Then, all of you, I want you all to live."

"And… I want to see the truth… one day, I want to know what happened."

Ayamine was herself, nobody else and nothing more. She sought to continue a story. It was not a brave story or a heroic story, it was only a story about people; about the people that lived and the people that died.

Some more time passed anyone else made themselves heard.

"Errm… Miki… Miki wants to protect the U-UN that her P-Papa worked so hard for all the time!"

"And of course M-Miki also wants everyone to be safe when we fight!"

"Then… one day… Miki become a great TSF pilot! So she can be proud of her own duty!"

The daughter of the undersecretary, Tamase. She started her career as a naïve, innocent soldier fighting against the same foe as everyone else. So with those child-like eyes she will see a beautiful world again, a peaceful earth that she crafted using those tiny hands.

"Ohh, my turn, my turn! I want to protect this world too, with everyone!"

"Then I want to come home safely with everyone at the end of our fights!"

"As for the last one… I wish to know… what dad is doing all this time… hopefully he's safe…"

Mikoto really had a troublesome father, that much was certain. He added pressure into the life of an otherwise relaxing, albeit sometime nonsensical girl. Still what Yoroi did, he did it for the good of Japan. We were soldiers that fought honourably for the safety of this nation, and he worked behind the scenes to keep that harmony.

"I'll go next: I want to defend this world together with everyone, I want everyone here to remain safe when we fight, and… I want to keep this… keep our way of life."

Kasumi knew nothing else until Sumika and I reached out to this poor girl without a home, it was saddening the only world she saw was this one of devastation and death. Maybe one day, I could show it to her too; my old planet, my old home.

"Then I'm last! I want to protect Takeru-chan's world! I want to protect Takeru-chan's dreams! And I also want to protect Takeru-chan's friends!" With a moderately sluggish look, I chopped Sumika's head hard.

After all, there was nothing for me to add to the will of a girl that had nothing left but me. We are really destined to be together; Sumika and I, two people's voyage for two people to bear.

"Owieee!"

"What're you doing, dummy? I just told you to have a general one, aren't those all personal?" How slow could this girl get?

"Ahhh, but I don't have anything general! I have nothing else other than you, Takeru-chan!" The innocent smile of a child did not pair well with that sentence drowning in darkness.

"That's… very well then, acceptable." Seeing no other method to bring back our old atmosphere, I simply motioned my hand to stop the others from questioning.

"Welp, we took a sweet nosedive by the end, but other than that I think this was quite fruitful. Everyone has their own dreams, right?" I got even stronger nods than before as reply.

"Then we'll work to realize those from now on. As a team, we'll have no failures, we'll have no loss, and we'll be the victors at all times. That's it for now, back to drinking, everyone!" I lifted my glass and the girls soon followed.

"Cheers!"

—

How… why does this happen every goddamn time?

"Ah~~ Take-ru-chaaaacn~~~! Wheeere aaare yooou~~? Yahoooo!"

"S-Sumika~~! D-do not bother Takeru without my pp-ermission~~!"

"Nyahahaha! It's… i-it's like I'm a bird~~!"

"Lalalala~~ t-this is sooooo great!"

"…"

"~Wh-aat's wrong… Ayamine…! Don't just sit in the corner by yourself now~~"

"Takeru-san, help."

"Nope, what can I do?" If stopping them was only as easy as Kasumi said it to be.

At first, our schedule was perfect for enjoying our alcohol usage. But just like when we went to the hot springs that one time; shit hit the fan at the speed of light when a change I didn't even notice took place. The only saving grace was that Kyozuka-oba-chan closed off the PX before this mess could escalate, or everyone's sorry asses would be getting dragged away by the MPs right now.

"Hahahaah~~! T-this is so great!" How can a supercomputer be drunk was beyond me.

"Takeru~~! I honoured our promise even now! Whe-where is my reward for my performance?!" There was literally nothing to help this group of drunkards.

"Nyahaha~~! Kasumi-san is soooo soft!"

"Right~~!"

"Takeru-san, help." While it was terrific that Kasumi was great at holding her liquor, she was useless in stopping these intoxicated idiots.

"C-come play with us~ T~Taker~u-saan!"

"S~oooo much fuun~!" Two very drunk and underdeveloped girls threatened to turn me into a criminal unwillingly. Unwillingly, because I was very willing to do that, minus the drunk part.

"…What is happening here? You did this, Shirogane?" The person that would salvage this situation turned out to be Yuuko-sensei.

"Well, you see…"

—

"Goddamn it… Shirogane. And I was wandering why the PX is off-limits."

"Welp, I was underprepared, I'll admit." How could one man, although a very handsome and smart world saviour, contain six drunk heads without hurting them?

"Here, I got this. Just knock them all out with a strong drink."

"Sensei, I only joked when I called you a mad scientist. You really want that to be the truth?"

"Just watch, Shirogane. You'll learn something from this."

—

Nobody would believe Yuuko-sensei's plan could actually take effect, then again, they also wouldn't solve this difficult dilemma in the first place.

Yuuko-sensei fetched some vodka, rum and some kind of tequila out of thin air and just poured them all into one bottle with many other mixings. After serving them one shot each of whatever venom sensei stirred up. The girls were out cold within seconds of their lips touching the glasses.

"Sensei… this won't cause alcohol poisoning, right?"

"No, this method is safe as long as they're somewhat tolerable to alcohol. This was how we would knock out Marimo back when she would get uncontrollably drunk in high school." That sounded like a genius plan we didn't apply in the old world. Unfortunately, Marimo-chan here got the nickname "mad dog" for a different reason, anyway.

"Well then, my job here is done. You'll clean this up, right?"

"Not an option, really."

—

With Kasumi's help. The bodies of my senseless teammates were dragged back to their respective rooms one by one. With that done, I cleaned up the mess of our dinner party. Being a Captain had never benefited me this greatly until now, having the power to shut off the PX for an hour after dinner time saved me multiple questionings from our dear, old MPs.

"Okay, I think we're done here."

"Yes." The PX had finally been renovated back in its former glory.

"Let's head back. Nothing left to see here."

"Yes." The madness induced party ended with the departure of the final two participants.

 **Shirogane's room**

"—hello? Capt. Shirogane, are you in?" Someone lightly knocked on my door before I could change into my sleepwear.

"Yeah, door's not locked. Come in." From the voice, Marimo-chan was the only person that should be outside my room at this hour.

"Excuse me." The entrance unbolted slowly for Marimo-chan to walk in. She showed me a quick salute only to be waved off yet again.

"Please don't make me raise my hand, I'm lazy like that." I perched down onto the bed to further prove my point.

"Huhuhu, alright then, Captain." She giggled quietly.

"Here, have a seat. I'm not pleasant enough to prepare you any tea, so just work with that."

"Of course, Captain. I apologize for disturbing you at this hour."

"Not a problem. Again, I'm just lazy myself." I pulled out the chair that was tucked under my desk for Marimo-chan. She adjusted herself swiftly onto the seat.

"So then, to what reason is your visit addressed to, Marimo-chan?"

"I… I-I just thought that I would drop by and see how you're doing." Some serious practice was in demand to hone Marimo-chan's trickily skills.

"And what have you observed here?" If Marimo-chan figured that I would be the one to break this ice, she figured wrong.

"…Your hair, Captain. Don't you think it's a bit on the long side?" What a strange concern for her to hold.

"This? I'm keeping it around this length because it reminds of my olden days." The haircut in question was much messier, or stylish compared to the original me, depending on who's asking.

The left bang over my front was slightly longer than my right fringe, creating an overall very untidy haircut with cuts all over the place. A forelock on the back side of my head constantly had a habit of curving up, many tries to put down that strand were implemented but when none were met with success, I just gave up because the work that was put in was not worth the result.

I will never admit this, but during my travels, I was also infected by the disease of having an Ahoge. The saving grace here was I didn't lose my intellectual abilities like Sumika; also mine wasn't capable of bending to form a heart, nor capable of being a long range antenna.

"But still, isn't this a little long for a male? I'm not judging or criticizing you, of course!"

"This isn't even the longest. I grew it out down to my shoulder one time." That was during my Imperial days, I never bothered to shave down this hair.

While my oldest haircut, the classic boyish look was discarded long ago. I didn't want to let it grow all the way back out, either. My current hair length was to the nape of my neck, but the front bang was limited down to only a little below the eyes.

"Really? I can't imagine that. You just don't look like the kind of person to grow their hair that long."

"I'm not. This is a way of remembering, I guess. My past… wasn't much of a comedy." With that, the topic returned to what Marimo-chan wished to discuss when she first entered my room.

"…That's true for all of us, I guess. I didn't come from the land of rainbows and unicorns either."

"Say, what happened in your past, Marimo-chan?" Might as well listen to that story again.

"Eh… you sure you want to know?" Maybe heeding her story again could entertain me during this melancholy hour.

"Why not? I'll tell you my past if you tell me yours." A fair trade was established between two veterans of the army.

"Okay… you know, I was inspired to be a teacher when I was in middle school, so I started studying really hard. But then, the BETA moved east and the school curriculum had to be changed to something more like basic military training. I dropped out of college after one year, entered the Imperial Army's Officer Candidate School and trained to be an Eishi instead." Marimo-chan looked back on the road she journeyed through that led her to where she was now.

"At that time, I thought the only way to bring back the schools I wanted to teach in was to end the war with the BETA… I was really young those days. My scores in basic training and class were quite good. But not like I can ever hope to beat you, hehe. After I was commissioned, the army put me in charge of a company, probably because my marks."

"The company was mostly recruits and my old squad mates, that was when we still didn't have any combat experience. So then we charged onto the front lines in high spirits… only to be completely defeated. The plan failed and the frontline crumbled. When I was still confused by that situation… all my subordinates… my old squad mates all died."

"I'm sorry to hear that." The past was something that no man should be able to change. Even with my gift, I could never help those that lost their lives before my time. Marimo-chan shifted a little and continued her story.

"At first, I hated myself for what I did, I fought with a deathwish to try and forget the pain. Still some time later, I started thinking about what I should do as the survivor, and based my fighting around that. That was when someone decided I was worthy enough to be transferred to an instructional squad.

"It was Yuuko-sensei."

"It was absolutely Yuuko. Huhuhu." We shared a short laugh together.

"Anyway… it's funny, really. I couldn't become a teacher because of the war, but I ended up being an Instructor in the Eishi Training School. Thinking back to those times, I would like to believe that the reason I was allowed to survive was so I can use my experience to help as many Eishis as I can. That is the only way I can make it up to my subordinates…" Silence overfilled my room, we both sat still for a good minute. Even when I already knew about this tale, it was still merit listening to again.

"That's… everyone have stories like that. I guess it's time to tell mine next."

"If you don't mind, Captain." Our promise wasn't difficult to keep, I just needed to watch my words.

"When I first got here, I had no idea what was happening. My old world was so peaceful, it was such a safe place to live that I didn't even have to worry about… anything. But then everything happened so fast, my life, it changed in the blink of an eye. By the time I realized, the BETA was already on our doorsteps. I wasn't even ready for the army. I suppose you can say I was forced into the military without any previous knowledge of it."

"So then I joined the squad and trained together with my old squad mates. We trained and trained, preparing to fight the BETA. I pride myself with my TSF piloting skills and was way too overconfident in my abilities. Our first combat, it was kind of like today. When the BETA just came out of nowhere, we were doing an exercise outdoor that day and they just attacked our forces, destroyed us when we weren't expecting it." That history wasn't something that I was proud of, but still a part of me nonetheless.

"All that time I acted as the hotshot of my unit. The second I saw the BETA I just lost my head. I panicked hard, couldn't think rationally at all. I endangered the rest of my squad and freaked out. But somehow during that mess. I survived my first encounter with the BETA while high on stims and drugs. All of the stars aligned that day, as not only I lived, but I distracted the BETA for the supply to reach the front."

"That's not bad, right? You survived the eight minutes of death, after all." If only Marimo-chan heard the end of that tale.

"Even if others saw that as an achievement, I certainly did not. My TSF was wrecked, my self-assurance was totally ruined. And like any responsible adult, I sat on the ground grieving over spilled milk."

"So then my old instructor came over, trying to comfort me. She reassured me of my success, that I survived the eight minutes. Told me her own past and failures. She taught me that when you get to the point where you can laugh at your mistakes, you'll find new things to replace what you lost…" I could clearly witness how shocked Marimo-chan was at hearing her own quote from another person.

"…Did she tell you that…?"

"Yeah, so I thought that I finally gotten over my lost, right? I was ready to face reality, ready to overcome my mistakes. But nope. When I turned my head only ninety degrees to the right… my old instructor was lifted… by the teeth of a… of a soldier-class…"

"…I…! I'm so sorry." My story wasn't even that heartbreaking compared to any other. And the icing on this cake was the personal connection we shared when I told it to Marimo-chan.

"It's nothing, really. I have gotten used to failure long ago, it's just those mistakes still come back and hunt me from time to time."

"Now when I remember back to that day, all I see is this field. It's the same field we trained on, the same field that the BETA attacked us on and the same field she was brutally killed on. I just get distracted by this from now and again." I was getting pathetic all over the place. My mask of poise and determination was starting to crack under the pressure from my accumulated years.

"Then what else can you see, Shirogane? Is it only death?"

"No… I remember the good times too. When we had fun, when we pursued the dreams together." Good times were those days, days that I cannot return to.

"Do you regret fighting for this goal?"

"Never, the meaning of my life lays by the end of my journey." Marimo-chan moved off her chair and joined me on the bed. She rested beside me, holding my hand as I present my cause.

"Then you're fine, Shirogane. You remember your old friends. They may have passed, but their wills still lives in you. And you should remember the times we spent together. Nobody's death is meaningless, you have to honour their memories and continue down your path." That was the same as what Marimo-chan taught me years ago.

"Yeah, I'll save this world, Marimo-chan. I am a world saviour. I'll save this earth, just haven't done it yet." Her eyes widen a tiny amount, too small for me to pick up her surprise at that time.

"You're not alone, Shirogane. I don't know who exactly you're fighting for, I don't even know who you are before your enlistment. Nevertheless, I know that you'll remember them, if they're with you, you'll cherish the moment. If they're not, you will honour their memory. I believe in you, Capt. Shirogane."

"Thank you, Marimo-chan… I'll save everything, for everyone." My resolve didn't waver that day, it only strengthened to greater height.

"I know. You're different, Shirogane. You're the embodiment of your team's success, of our success. Just like the cherry blossoms outside the base. You represent the idea of victory now." And for the first time in decades, Marimo-chan patted me. With the warm hand of my teacher that I had long since forgotten, she laid her hand on my head like the old teacher that she used to be.

"We'll keep fighting, we just can't stop."

"You're right, humanity depends on our victory… your victory."

—

A reasonless world we live in. A disordered cause we fight for. Together we danced with death; together we sang to defeat. But this world of madness still held its logic, it still operated by the same standard as the old earth. So it only made sense for me to tear down those rules and rip away this logic. Nothing can stop my feet from taking one more step, no one will rob me of my future. I will take everything for my own, the power to stop this insane world will be between my hands.

A future I will craft will be a future for all.

 **Author's note**

So I'm back from a week of absence, to bring you all this super short chapter, of course. Pacing, right? What a pain in the ass. You know, I got another week of education before winter break lets out so I should be able to get a lot done by that time. I am thinking about doubling down on chapters for next week but if that doesn't happen, it will be the week after that. So I own you guys a double chapter week sometime.

In other news, shout out to Fallout 4. The game that almost made me fail like seven exams. Terrible game though, what do you mean I can't have AP Bazooka hair or antenna Ahoge? 0/10 IGN. (Seriously, I really have to stop playing Fallout 4.)

BETA done by Chad001. Errm… so why can't you run in a camping ground? You can only ran, because it's past tents.

Here's your joke, didn't say it got to be good.

Made a ninja edit because somehow I missed it. Nothing to see here, go back to your days now.

Also Favourite and review and all that stuff, do it if you wanna, I'm out.


	21. Education in any form

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 11, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

Shake, shake. Shake, shake.

Maybe if I hit them really hard on the head, this'll stop.

"Wham!" Jumping out of my bed while shouting a sound effect, I chopped whoever was annoying me to no end.

"Agaaa." That was about right, Kasumi backed off and rubbed the point of impact on her head.

"Aaaawa! Takeru-chan! That was super mean!" And one for the supercomputer as well.

"Owieeee!" Sumika rolled around on my floor, holding her round top with her cute palms.

"That was fun."

"It wasn't."

—

"Let's get ready then, what're you two waiting for?" After dressing myself, washing my face and checking my hair. I was set for a new day.

"Owi… so mean… why do you always treat me like this, Takeru-chan!?"

"Hum… don't know. You're just so punchable, things happen, you know?" Sumika puffed her cheeks out to show the pent up frustration.

"Mou… whatever. More importantly, have you felt anything weird these days?" Catching me by surprise, Sumika asked an unusual question.

"Weird? Give me an example."

"Umm… I'm not too sure how to say it though… like, have you had nightmares or anything similar happening lately?" That was quite the trigger word for me. As if Sumika knew exactly what I was suffering from the past few days, she pinpointed my recent distress with ease.

"Yeah, actually. I have been having nightmares and the like for a few days now. Well, not really nightmares, more like just old memories resurfacing. None of these happened in my past loops which just makes things stranger."

"I knew it. What about you, Kasumi-chan?"

"Me too, I'm have memoires of things I can't remember doing. It was probably from before we were able to retain our memories." Sumika nodded in agreement.

"I'm a bit worried, Takeru-chan. Your Causality status isn't right. It's… like you're slowly turning into 'not Takeru-chan' anymore."

"…What…?" I stared at her blindly in response to a made up word.

"This should be happening to everyone else as well. Their old memories could be coming back."

"…Okay? So what does that mean?" This woman just makes no sense from time to time.

"I don't know too well myself. None of this had been happening before and I can't do anything about it. Just watch out for yourself, okay?"

"Alright, if my spidey sense tingles. I'll let you know." A short chuckle later, Sumika linked her arms around my neck and kissed me gently.

"Be safe, okay?"

"Huh, don't worry about it." I smiled softly at her tender reminder. We shared another kiss before Sumika let me go.

"Me too, Takeru-san." Carrying a soft blush along, Kasumi reached out her hands as well.

"You asked." Instead of mildly pecking her lips, I seized Kasumi's hands above her head and forcefully tongued her depths.

"Oooo, Takeru-chan…" Sumika watched excitingly off to the side, a little blush over her adorable face.

"M-mwwaa… Ta-Takeru-san… stop…" Squeezing out some lines of pleading between ragged her breaths, Kasumi flustered hot red in matter of seconds. But our period of fondness protracted much longer than that.

"There you go, happy now?" The bunny girl finally regained her freedom after many seconds. She slid down on the ground slowly from the loss of strength in her legs.

"…That was mean, Takeru-san. I have to change my panties now." Kasumi said with unfocused eyes as if she was staring into the void.

"Huh…? Hahaha! …!" I burst out full laughter at her shameless declaration. Dirty Kasumi was the best Kasumi.

"Eh…? Why…?" Sumika undeniably wasn't innocent enough to misinterpret her lines, which led me to the conclusion that she just couldn't accept reality.

"It got wet." Sumika's expression was pure gold that I have trouble describing it in words.

"Hahahaha! We'll continue at night, okay?"

"Okay." Seeing Kasumi talk dirty was a true rarity these days. Below her pure illusion of a young girl was another more mature side of her that I undoubtedly corrupted.

 **Briefing room**

"Nice uniforms, right? I think they look great for the all of you." The crew gathered for our morning roll-call in the same briefing room we always used.

Each of them donned the official officer suit instead of the cadet uniforms. In comparison, I valued the officer uniform higher than the cadet's. Since it just beams off an aura of professionalism.

"Indeed, I feel much more adequate bearing this clothing."

"I know, right? It just feels so right!" The amount of the word 'right' was too damn high.

"…Good taste." So more comments fired out before the team ceased their chattering for me to resume.

"Alright, bitches. Listen up!" Murderous intents, murderous intents everywhere.

"Today is the official day we form our new team. I'll just be blabbering here for the whole day so you girls better not let me catch you snoozing." Having to go over all the knowledge stuff again was such a drag. Being the squad leader had its moments, but now wasn't one of them.

"Yesterday I briefly went over the unit structure and all that stuff. So I'm going to explain everything better now. Publically, we're the 13th Squadron of A-01, but that's only the surface of the truth. We're an independent specialized covert unit working for the completion of Alternative IV."

"…Alternative IV? Is that what you told us before the coup?" Class rep's natural question reminded me again of the pain in teaching others.

"Right… got to explain all this first… Sumika, you want to try?"

"Okay!"

—

"You're useless, woman. Get off." If someone understood Sumika's nonsense, their future in a mental asylum is unavoidable.

"Aaa! That's really not nice, Takeru-chan!"

"…I can't even… just shut up, stupid. Picking up from where Sumika's dumbass left off. Alternative IV currently is the only project of its kind in progress and thus…"

—

"We're all clear then, any questions?" The silence over the room meant that all the girls understood enough of my explanation to not be confused. Alternative IV was a simple enough plan without discussing the details.

"So back to us. Like I said, independent unit. We operate off the record with the right to intervene in any conflict as long as it relates to Alternative IV. Shout out to the Vice-Commander, by the way. She hooked us up with this much power, so we better not let her down, you all hear?"

"Yes, sir!" A nice response echoed a little in the room.

"What else, what else. I'll go over the TSFs we'll be using from now on. With the exception of Meiya and my own units. Everyone else will be using Type-94 Shiranui, as you're should know by now. Also, 'team specific TSF' here, Meiya and I." My hand was out-reached to high-five her.

"Ahh… I just clap your hand, right?"

"Yep, like what we did during the exercise." She hesitantly stretched her arm and clapped mine with a jumbled façade. The others just watched us with dead eyes until our little session was over.

"Nicely done. Moving on now, I'm assuming we all know about the TSF squadron organization and roles. But since we're a special unit and all, I'm changing some of the jobs around." Opening the screen behind me, it showed a fine listing of everyone and their assigned duty.

"Going from the front to be back. We have Meiya, Storm Vanguard-1. Carrying a gun, two swords, two knives and a Supplementary Armour. That's a very coveted title, you bear the most risk but is also the most trusted member."

"Yes, sir. I will not fail my team." She seriously saluted me, which only got laughed off with a wave.

"Next, I'll be Strike Vanguard-1. And before anyone asks, no! I'll not be Gun Interceptor because that crap is boring as hell. My TSF can hold up to six different weapons so I'll just double down on the assault rifles. I don't have a shield which is fine either way." Some chuckled a bit when others sighed at my usual behaviour.

"After that is Gun Sweeper, which will be Kasumi here. She has been granted the usage of additional Mount Pylons for her personal fighting style. Normally Gun Sweepers have four rifles, however, Kasumi'll take eight of these pew-pews. Don't question it."

"We'll have Class rep play the role of Gun Interceptor. The most boring one, a gun, and sword, a shield and two knives. Since she used to be the old squad leader, she'll be in the best position in case of emergency."

"Wait, Takeru. Basing this on rank, shouldn't Sumika be the Gun Interceptor? Since she is a First Lieutenant and higher in rank than I am." Another great point by Class rep, I decided now wasn't the time to reveal everything just yet.

"No, Sumika's too stupid to have a real role, she'll just be the wildcard here."

"Hey! Why you so mean to me all the time, Takeru-chan!?" Sumika's complaint was filed to the wrong superior.

"Shut up, woman. Unfortunately, we don't have enough numbers for an Impact Guard so Tama will be promoted directly to Rush Guard. You'll get a support assault rifle and two actual rifles along with the normal knives." Tama enthusiastically nodded at my order.

"Ayamine here will be… actually, let's make her a Gun Interceptor as well. You have to work with Class rep for the rest of your life. Oohhh noooo~!" I flailed my arms a bit like a crazy person.

"Ayamine requesting permission to shoot Class rep in the back." She raised her hand high and asked.

"What! Stop saying such nonsensical stuff and focus, Ayamine!"

"Approved, double points for tapping that ass." Since Class rep couldn't do anything to me, she moved over and pretend-strangled the joker.

"Finally, Mikoto. You'll be the Blast Guard, the one with the missiles and all that good stuff. The Autonomous Multi-Purpose Missile System; that thing looks ugly as hell, but big explosives come out of it so it's not too bad. Other than that, a gun, a shield and two knives will be your inventory."

"What if we don't use the missiles, Takeru!?" As hyped up as ever, Mikoto did bring up a good point.

"We'll have you switch for an extra gun and sword, nothing fancy."

"Now is the time for questions, anyone got any?" The screen behind me reviewed what I explained again to further hammer home their roles.

"So what will Sumika-san be piloting?" Tama asked first.

"I don't care, really. What do you want, Sumika?"

"Em… I'm not really sure. Maybe just the typical loadout?" I applied my palm directly to forehead.

"We'll… figure that out later. Probably in the simulator or something. Anyway, for the next topic, I'll go over the cause to our possible extinction; the BETA, that is."

—

"First, we have hives. The BETA's fortresses. A hive is a forward base established at the point where a BETA spaceship or landing unit, if you want to call it that; impacted." I clicked on the computer for a new image to materialized behind me.

My lesson was going relatively well, teaching everyone all the knowledge needed in such a short time could be a bit of a starch. However, we did not have the leisure to diddle daddle around the shop.

"The aboveground portion is called the Monument, the underground portion called the stab. After landing, the BETA digs their way around the place and expands both structures. Next for the phases of the hives." Some girls were writing down my every word in their notepads while the ones that didn't listened intensely.

—

"To summarize, all hives on earth are part of the first six phases. There all three main parts of the hive structure, the Monument, the Stab and the Main Shaft. At the very center of the hive is their reactor, think of it as the heart of said hive. We get rid of it, we win. Any questions?"

"How much hives are on earth in total?" Class rep inquired about a meaningful subject.

"Twenty-six. Two in Japan, three in China; Mongolia, Burma, India, Iran, Iraq, Finland, Belarus, Hungary, France and South Korea each have one. Kazakhstan got two and Russia with the winning number of nine." This basic information was painted in my head long ago.

"…Two? Don't we only have the one in Sado?" The follow up by Class rep reminded me of a detail.

"Nah, second one's in Yokohama. Thirty-three floors under us."

"…" Now for the shock to sink in, about five seconds should be good…

"EEEEHHHH?!" Everyone almost jumped out of their skins from that super surprise, Sumika and Kasumi were still acting normal though.

"No joke, we're sitting on one. I know you all got questions and stuff but most of this is all classified. Just know that it's safe until Sadogashima goes down, won't have a problem before that, I promise." Taking my vow at face value, the girls settled down and found their composure.

"That's it of the questions? Good. The upcoming class is about the species actually living in these hives. Fifteen minutes break, don' t be late."

—

"All the intelligence we have on the different strains of BETA are from Alternative II. While there are many species, it's these seven that we have to watch out for. Shout out to the past Eishis who passed on their experience in dealing with each of these seven BETA species."

The room was emptied of any sound other than my sole voice. The girls listened with absolute attention, knowing that everything I teach here will be of uttermost importance.

"This is the good part, I'll teach everyone about the seven strains and tactics on fighting them." The slide altered itself once again as my next lesson begun.

"First, we got ourselves the laser strains which ruined humanity's concept of aerial combat. This is the small guy, we call it 'Lux'. And, ahaha… you know what? Kasumi, do you want to give this a shot?" Finding it difficult to explain all the species of BETA without cracking too much jokes, I passed the teaching role to Kasumi instead.

"3 meters tall, 1.2 meters long and 1.6 meters wide. The Laser-class BETA are the smaller Laser strains. They're weak to 36mm and can be killed easily. But their laser is a threat to TSFs and tanks, like aircraft…" The Russian girl was doing just fine going over the details of each and every species of BETA without my help.

"Oh, by the way. Let me explain the things like the Laser Hazard region Warnings and Laser Exposure Warnings."

—

"So to shorten my points, your XM3 allows you to bypass the automatic evasive system. However, if you don't have a planned course in mind while overriding the protocol, your ass is just going to be fried to a crisp which leads to a very embarrassing letter home. As we mostly will be operating in teams, data link will paint your threats for others to shoot at; saving you in the process. That's why trust between the Eishi in a given unit can determine the outcome of battle. You got it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good, let's continue the lecture. Before that though, someone pass me a chair, I'm tired."

—

"And that's it for the Laser-class. While they sound like the most dangerous dudes on paper, the reality is that the BETA just Zerg Rush everything to shit with their sheer quantities. Which, is their number one advantage over us the humans."

"You all should understand that by now, remember yesterday? When the crab looking guys and the triangles just wouldn't stop coming. That's your life now." Although the subject was a solemn one, my team still had some light hearted laughs at my below average jokes.

"In conclusion. When we're taking on a hive, we blow away the Laser-class first for aerial bombardment. Then we clean up the stragglers, got that?"

"Yes, sir." The crew was quite intrigued by my presentation. I had nothing against their focus so the lesson continued on without interruption.

"Let me talk about all the other strains in detail now— oh, we're actually cutting into lunch break pretty soon, you girls want some food first?" No one replied to the opportunity at early dismissal.

"Then we'll continue, other strains… other strains…"

—

"These three are like the main anti-TSF classes. Grappler-Class will snatch you up, the Destroyer-Class will ram you down and the Fort-Class will just stab you or something. If you're out there, make sure to remember the proper steps in dealing with each of these guys. Don't let up just because their long range attack is gone. Kasumi, keep going."

"These are the smaller species, infantry units are capable of killing them. First is Tank-class, actually I kinda lied earlier; Tank-class have the highest K.D out of every species, for a super simply reason. Look at this." The projector lid up again to display an easy pie chart.

"…45 percent… of Tank-class." Meiya muttered on instinct when the numbers show up.

"…That is a lot."

"Indeed a lot, girls. Compared to Laser, Heavy Laser and Fort which are only 3 percent combined. You should have a good idea of the numbers we'll be dealing with."

"Then let's go in the specifics."

—

"Lastly, the Soldier-Class, 2.3 meters tall, 1.2 meters long and 1.4 meters wide. They're the smallest strain of BETA…"

"Though the Soldier-Class are the weakest. Never take them lightly, they have a tendency to be very good at sneaking up on people; I experienced that personally. On the other hand, if you have to face one solo; as long as you're armed, you should be fine. I killed one with a single knife just for fun yesterday, it wasn't that fun."

"Ehh? You really did that yesterday, Takeru-san?" Tama sounded excited from my action.

"Wasn't that entertaining, 5 out of 7." I got some strange looks for using a weird scale but I paid them no mind.

"Anyway, let's take a break. We've been in session for six hours now, didn't even eat lunch." A short moment of quietness filled the classroom. We sat around for some time, not really knowing what to do next.

"Say, Takeru. When you first faced the BETA, what was it like?" Meiya asked me after we relaxed a bit.

"I got scared, just like the rest of you. That day was much like yesterday, my team was out doing an exercise. The BETA jumped us, we took heavy casualties because no one had real ammo. I lost my instructor that day too…" The tragic days were behind me, never to be repeated again.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"But all this is in the past. As the commander of the Archangels, I will watch the back of each and every one of you here. And I trust you all to watch mine. Unlike other units, you girls saw the horror of combat first hand yesterday. Don't try and forget your fear, embrace it."

"You have lots of edges compared to any other training squad on this base. We're an elite team, girls; we're going to be the best unit of this world one day. Everyone here, all together." A single hand raised in the air, mine. It didn't have any symbol, really. Yet, that was fine too, as long as our goals are the same, we will never fail anything again, I will not permit it.

"Yes, sir!" The girls shouted righteously in unison, their faces beaming with hope and courage. It was the confident look of a person knowing the unfavourable future, but still chose to bear the burden of traversing such a path.

 **PX**

"One Yakisoba, please." With the ticket in hand, Ayamine begged me for her most preferred food.

"I got you covered." I left my seat to fetch Ayamine's food for her.

—

"Ahaaa… such a looooong lesson!"

"Do not complain about needed education, Yoroi. It is our duty to understand our enemy to the best of our ability."

"Still, Takeru-san kept the class going… like forever! I got really hungry around 3 O'clock. Hehe."

"Can't help it, we agreed to skip lunch and take the class instead. Takeru had to miss his meal as well."

"Good guy squad leader."

—

"Ayamine! Fetch!" A long distance throw came sailing from my side of the PX to the table where the squad sat. Like the good pet she was, Ayamine jumped out of her seat and caught the Yakisoba bread with only her mouth.

"What…?" I was greeted with glares of confusion and disrespect upon my return.

"Takeru… you… such arrogance…"

"Takeru-chan always acts like this… but it was still super mean!"

"Takeru-san, why?" The criticism was just raining down with no gap for me to escape.

"Takeru… good throw." At least Ayamine admired my delivery.

"That's better, now who's a good doggi— girl. Who's a good girl now?"

"Go kill yourself." Didn't admire it very long, I noticed.

—

"We'll go over TSF specs, history and settings tomorrow. Although we know about most of these things in training class, I still have to remind you all. However there is some good news with that, we'll be taking our new TSFs out for a spin in town, just because we can." Getting them used to the Shiranui as soon as possible was the best course of action.

"Really!? That's amazing, Takeru-san!"

"True that, those units are fresh out of the factory with your accumulated data from the XM3 already transferred over. On that note, the XM3 we'll be using is a specialized vision exclusively tuned for A-01. It'll be different from the mass-produced vision and our old concept vision." I got Yuuko-sensei to make some upgrades for our XM3 now that we were an official unit.

"Reeallly!? The benefit of being a special unit is so great!"

"That's sooo awesome!" Tama and Mikoto both expressed their joy.

"There shouldn't be any inconstancy between the different OS, only an improvement in efficiently."

"Are you sure about going right to piloting? Shouldn't we practice more in the simulators?" A logical question for Class rep.

"I believe actual pilot time is more important than simulation time Also since they'll be renovating both the pods and JIVES for our TSFs, we can now simulate BETA attacks no matter the condition." That was another big favour from sensei, she cooperated nicely thanks to my charms.

"Such advancements… you are viewing us quite highly, are you not?"

"That's because I believe in this team, Meiya. And it's not only me who sees great potential in us. The Vice-commander and the general also think of us as a very capable unit." Meiya nodded in silence, she must had also understood how reputable we were.

"For our outing tomorrow we'll be carrying live rounds and weaponry, so just be careful, alright?"

"Wait, isn't that like, really dangerous!?" Always got to be a party-pooper, that Class rep.

"The weapon system will be locked unless I say otherwise. Don't worry too much, Class rep, you're not the leader anymore." Dejected by my rejection, Class rep shot me a disappointed glare before focusing back on her food.

"Alright, once we're done here. We'll be dismissed for today."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Updates, sensei?" I took my regular seat on the sofa as per habit.

"You're late, I was about to go to bed." Couldn't argue with the clock, the current time was eleven at night. A time when the good children were wandering in their dreamland.

"Look, things happen. What do you want to tell me?"

"First, how was leading your own independent unit?"

"I would tell you after we break some rules. Haven't done that yet." Yuuko-sensei slipped in her chair and laughed.

"Guess that's true. Another topic then, your weapon system from Boening arrived."

" Oh, sweet. What did they bring?" A PDA was thrown like a Frisbee by sensei to me, she should seriously consider taking better care of military properties.

"Eight sets of XAMWS-24 rifles, XCIWS-2B Melee Halberd and LCIWS-1C daggers. As for your attachments: four sets of multi-purpose Blade Sheath, universal YF-23 Mount Pylon, Pratts & Witney YFE119-PW-100 Jump units and extra ankle blades."

To a normal person, what sensei described was probably total nonsense. Nevertheless, the gist of it was that my new frame was super awesome, pimped out with the best our technology could offer.

"Hehehe, can't believe the Americans just handed over their good stuff so easily. They really want these Russian twins or whatever."

"No doubt, if they're willing to trust us with this gear. The Scarlet twins must be worth more than this." It didn't matter to me since I don't have a Russian fetish, not counting Kasumi, of course.

"Then I have some cool stuff to show off tomorrow. Nice, nice."

"That was great news so this won't be, Shirogane. The head officer from PROMINENCE will be coming over tomorrow, she'll be checking Alternative IV's progress for the Ministry of Defence as well as delivering us the railguns. Here's her file." A document folder was sent soaring through the air this time.

"Let's me see here, Fudai household vassal of the Honour Guards: First Lieutenant… Takamura…? Yui… okay." And the file that never nagged my curiosity was tossed to the side without any caution.

"You seriously don't care, Shirogane?"

"Nah, just some Japanese princess whose entire live is set by her family name. I don't like people who can't adapt to this changing world. Pretty face, but doesn't interest me in the slightest." I may have met her during my days in Yukon, or maybe I didn't.

"If you say so. Strange, and here I thought you tap all the girls around you." Now that was just offensive.

"If they're free, I'll do it. However, NTRing some poor guy isn't my hobby. Although, I'm also sure that I can change her opinion given enough time, huhuhu." My evil giggle was brushed aside by a not-so-impressed Yuuko-sensei.

"Well, the operation for the DIA will be next week. If your team is ready, we can launch you sooner; if you, you are ready that is." It took me a couple of seconds to pick up her undertone.

"We're not ready to go just yet, anything else?"

"Not really, go have some fun, Captain. The real battle will begin before you know it."

"Don't worry, I definitely know it."

 **December 12, 2001**

 **Hiiragi ruins**

"—Sumika, you step on this, you ain't going to be able to pay for it." The source for my warning was due to Sumika's Shiranui almost stepped on my Arondight.

"—Araa, I'll be careful." Such an idiot, this girl. But that's what I love most about her.

The squadron stood around outside in their various TSFs with no target to engage. This might appear to be nothing but a waste of military funds on the surface; however, it actually was nothing but a waste of military funds. Except for a short mission requested by headquarters, we had no reason to be running around in the city.

"—So why exactly are we out here again?" Class rep questioned my command almost immediately.

"Oh… shit. I forgot to tell you girls." Even without looking, I already knew Class rep sighed while faceplaming yet again.

"That's okay though, we still have lots of time. We're here to escort the 211th Flying Crops who'll be delivering some armaments for the Ministry of Defense, the content is classified so don't even ask. It won't be a fun mission, we'll just be guiding them to the airstrip in three hours, that's it."

"Ehh… that's just boring." Sumika had the bravery to complaint about my order.

"I'm gonna ignore her and start the class. As a covert unit, we have no restriction when it comes to our TSFs, exhibit A and B; me and Meiya, right here. So that means if you find another TSF you somehow can use, go ahead." My machine signalled for Meiya to pilot hers beside mine.

"All of our frames are third gen. I could go in detail about your Shiranui's history, but that's what history books are for." The rest of my squad formed up single file facing us. Having six TSFs staring me on was quite an uncomfortable feeling.

"The term 'third generation TSF' refers to many different models. Imperial's Shiranui and Fubuki, both of which you all have rode. Honour Guard's Takemikazuchi, American's F-22A Raptor, F-35 Peregrine and A-12 Avenger. Not forgetting about the YF-23 Black Widow II, mine is based on that, just so you know."

"There're still more. EU's EF-2000 Typhoon and Rafale, Soviet's Su-37 Terminator and Su-47 Berkut. All Third gen, best of huma—"

"—Takeru-san, Su-37 is 2.5th generation." I shot her my classic deadpan look for that correction.

"…Shaddap!" I danced my mechanical arms around like I was trying to swat some flies for show.

"Moving on, I'll discuss the main points of Third-gen compared to the previous ones…"

—

"To make the long lecture short. With lighter armour, operation By Light, more efficient and powerful engines together with the XM3. The miraculous mobility of the third generation is made possible due to all these combined. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." It was a radio answer that greeted me from my earpiece.

"Let's talk about your components next. From your Anti-Laser Countermeasures to autopilot, Slave Mode and the exact purpose of the XM3…"

—

"That covers all of the functions of a third gen TSF. To be honest, the Shiranui isn't a great example of the third gen. Remember during the coup when the American's Raptors had a K/D ratio of seven? That number would decrease drastically if they were to face… say, Type-00s or Su-47s."

"The Type-94 is just a very basic TSF, not bad; certainly can be modified for the better though. Like Meiya's Takemikazuchi here. I'll spare you all the specs details and go right to the best parts, its fixed armaments. Meiya, show us." By passing the spotlight to Meiya's unit, everyone's concentration shifted to her.

"Very well, I shall demonstrated said attachments…"

—

"The Takemikazuchi isn't branded as the 'big three' of TSFs without a solid cause. A Retractable Dagger in the arm sheath facing forward and two that faces backwards on each arm, pairs with its Blade Edge Armour on its head, shoulders, fingers and toes make it incomparable with the Shiranui."

"Is that satisfactory, Takeru?" Meiya asked me as she sliced a piece of rumble in half with her rear facing Daggers.

"Good job, Meiya. How's the Type-00?"

"It is very much smoother and powerful, from my experience in the simulator with the Fubuki, my machine is probably around 30 percent more competent." That was obviously self-evident, but no point in chewing her out for it. The percentage estimate was very close though.

"Nice, now for my Surface Fighter. Officially, this TSF, the YF-23 Arondight doesn't exist. It was entrusted to me by our good buddies in the America intelligence agency. They told me to take good care of this frame as every record of it has been erased." I heard some soft giggles but opted to cease the jokes for the time being.

"Disregarding that, this is an experimental unit developed by Boening specialists. Notable features include the capacity to carry up to six different weapons which are mounted on universal Mount Pylons; foot and ankle mounted blades, a more advanced arm-mounted blade sheaths and many other great additions." Demonstrating my awesome unbeatable machine as the rest of the girls watched my movements in awe, I swung around the blade with tactical precision.

"Also I got second-generation active stealth functions, this crap is complex as shit so I didn't get my chance to try it out during the coup. Looking at the manuals here, it tells me I can hack the data-link of other TSFs and manipulate their information. Cool stuff, gonna try it out later."

"For now, just get used to your Shiranui and go to town." we spent some more hours outside, practicing maneuvers and getting familiar with the new units.

—

"Hehe, try and catch me then!"

"Takeeeeru! Stop running awayyyy!"

I soared to the sky in my YF-23, Mikoto chased my back intensely without losing too much space. We were engaging in a mock dogfight with JIVES active, using simulated bullets was a drawback but firing the weapons was obvious not allowed.

Relying on simulators as our only form of combat would eventually rust our edges as an elite squad, experiences were gained through real combat instead of imitated ones.

"Lock-on is only good for mid to long range combat! Don't try and get lock onto targets in close quarter where point-blank firing could be more effective!"

"Aha…! Understood!" Teaching Mikoto as we flew along, I helped her with many combat tactics I accumulated myself.

Out of my peripheral vision, I could spot Tama and Kasumi down on the ground, practicing their sharpshooting skills and honing their ability to react to speedy targets.

Meiya and Sumika were fervently training their close quarter sword fights; I warned them earlier about the danger of using real swords for practice, so it should be fine even if I left them to their own devices.

Lastly and remarkably, Class rep and Ayamine were attempting to improve on their lackluster teamwork. Even if they weren't the best of friends, it brought me some reassurance when I witnessed them trying to fix their problems with cooperation.

"I'm gonna get you soon, Mikoto! You better retreat or fight back!"

Reacting to my provocation with a bit of dismay, Mikoto dashed straight up with her Shiranui before slamming the brakes and diving back down, striving to catch my back.

"Huhu, good try."

Spinning my own YF-23 in response, I faced her upside-down with both guns primed. Just when my auto-aim was about to lock-on, Mikoto executed a Thrust Vector, a maneuver that rotated her TSF vertically to avoid my aim which was limited due to my position.

Unfortunately for her, I foresaw that trick thanks to my wisdom in anti-TSF combat. My unit boosted downward with great velocity which threw her for a loop and made her lose sight for a split second. Coming up behind her after a hard Surface Jump off the ground, I surprised her with my daggers when she looked down to acquire her target.

"Mikoto, you're dead."

"Ahaha… you're just too strong, Takeru. I didn't seriously think that would work, but it was worth a try."

"It would have worked on anyone else, I think. You're getting really good these days, you know?" And it wasn't Mikoto only, I could see a clear distinction between the piloting skills of all the girls skyrocketing before and after the coup. Maybe it was just me, but there was absolutely something going on here.

"Actually, I just feel like I know how to do all this. Emmm… it's hard to explain, but, it feels like I just know how to perform all these movements." In classic Mikoto fashion, she indicated the same statement twice in one sentence.

"Huh? So you're getting better without trying. That's quite interesting."

"And it's not only me! We discussed this with the others and everyone agreed that they just feel better at piloting." I honestly had no prove to say the Causality stuff was affecting their skills; most importantly, if they were getting more effective without training, then I didn't care for the rationale of it.

—

"—this is HQ to Archangel 1, 211th Flying Corps are 200 kilometres out, move your team in position for escort." I was finally put on guard duty after my conversation with Mikoto went nowhere.

"—Archangel 1, copy. —alright girls, fun time is over. Link up with me and head for the waypoint on the map."

"—Understood."

 **Hanger**

"That was so borrring!"

"Yeah, absolutely. We watched some planes fly away and that was it." Guarding some aircraft to the landing zone was never of any entertainment value, but that along won't stop my grievance.

"What're we doing now, Takeru-chan?"

"I have a meeting after this, you girls are dismissed for today. Oh, by the way, we may have an operation coming up soon so just be prepared for that. The training schedule for the next few days will be very tight, you all have to be ready for real combat." The team got a bit puzzled and confused from my revelation.

Being in no mood to answer any questions, I quickly exited out before their questions could ever shower me in their puzzlement.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Conference room**

Sitting on a slick, black sofa in the center of the room alone, Yui was quite upset with her treatment after stepping off the C-2 transport aircraft. Sure, she was told to wait for the Vice-Commander of Yokohama Base who was supposed to greet her after her arrival. However, the fact was that nobody have entered the room after her for ten minutes now.

Two EML-99X Electromagnetic Induction Launchers, also popularly known simply as the railgun was what the Vice-Commander of Yokohama had ordered a week back. Seeing the astonishing grow in power of Alternative IV left the Ministry of Defence no choice other than to comply with the demand of Alternative IV's head director.

Besides, the cold, hard cash was already paid fully in advance, so the ministry had no reason to turn down their request in the first place. Also, a sudden push from the newly reformed Imperial Diet had called for full support of Alternative IV, making it impossible for the ministry to refuse ever if at all.

Her initial impression of Alternative might not be the greatest, but Yui knew that was because they didn't need to leave any. She wasn't too knowledgeable about every detail of said project, all she knew was that whoever they were, or whatever they did. Alternative IV just demolished, quietly literally; America's number one intelligence agency for disrupting their own plans.

That ruthlessness was already fearful enough, having a single project left with the brand of 'humanity's last hope' didn't create much space for competition.

"—Ara, sorry about the late entrance, Lieutenant. I was busy dealing with some other things." The door suddenly swung open, and from it entered a beautiful purple haired lady in UN uniform and a lab coat.

"Vice-Commander Kouzuki, is it? It's my pleasure to meet the director." Yui's outstretched hand was casually shook by Kouzuki who just didn't seem very interested, in anything.

"First Lieutenant Takamura Yui, welcome to Yokohama Base. The main base of the UN 11th Force as well as the current home to the Alternative IV project. I'm not one for fancy greetings so let's just get to the point."

"I have no objections." Taking a seat herself, Kouzuki crossed her legs while relaxing down on the sofa. Even a child could understand just exactly how serious she was taking this discussion.

"So then, I'll assume my package has also arrived with you, Lieutenant. Let's talk about your goal here first." Brainstorming didn't help Yui find a way to deal with this obviously insidious professor.

The Royal Guard understood from the moment of the Professor's entry the ball was out of her court, so the best Yui could do for now was just going along with the Vice-Commander and not causing any hard feelings.

"I am ordered to… research, the progress of the project, Vice-Commander. The Ministry of Defence wishes for a report on the status of Alternative so we can better assess what further assistance we could provide."

"Huhuhu, how nice of the department indeed. What'll you do then?" Still informally smiling at her, Yui was secretly annoyed at Kouzuki's openly superior attitude towards her.

"If it's not too much trouble, I would like to meet with the task force leaders for Alternative IV."

"Yeah, sure I'll call them." That was only the easy part.

—

"Professor, you called for us?"

"Yo, Yuuko-sensei." Two soldiers entered shortly after Kouzuki asked for their presence.

While wearing the same uniform and bearing the same rank, the one point that screamed out to Yui was how different the two Eishis were.

"Isumi, Shirogane. Meet 1st Lt. Takamura of the Imperial Royal Guard. Introduce yourselves, and don't worry about secrecy. Lieutenant Takamura here is an ally of our project, I think that's reasonable to say." The female officer showed no sign of difference while the male chuckled coldly to himself.

"Nice to meet you, First Lieutenant. I'm Captain Isumi Michiru of the A-01 Special Task Force 9th Squadron, Valkyries." Yui shared a film handshake with Captain Isumi, someone who she was fond of based on first impression.

Yui thought of her as a very professional soldier purely from observation. Short hair, serious demeanor and the stance expressed her expertise of being part of the military for ages.

"The pleasure is mine, Captain."

"Hey, Shirogane Takeru of the A-01's 13th Squadron, Archangel. Also a Captain." Gripping Yui's hand with a flamboyant carriage, Shirogane gave it a lacking shake as he pasted a smug smirk perfectly over his evidently cocky face.

"Good afternoon, Captain." Her first impression of Shirogane was on a totally different standard.

A young male in his late-teens or early-twenties, Shirogane's untidy hair flicked with every movement of his head. He was about the same height as herself, maybe only inching her with a few millimetres; or that was what she would like to believe.

However, the most puzzling feature of this young Eishi to Yui was his aura, there was no doubt that he was a strong man, a self-assured combatant that had overcome his own devil to achieved such poise. Yet he felt empty, his dark irises told no tale of joy in contrast to his below respectable behaviour.

Still that wasn't all, while Yui disliked the thought of it, she felt as if the man's hollow aura also carried with it a pressure of complete dominance over all others in this room, even the ever-crafty Vice-Commander. It was a strange feeling, really. She got the sense that just speaking with this man will distract her heart from the path she should never stray away.

"As you can see, these two are the squad leaders for A-01. If I recall correctly, you will be staying here for five days, right?"

"That's correct. Thank you for your hospitality, Vice-Commander."

"Alright then, I'll arrange a room for you. In the meantime, you're free to do whatever you see fit to better judge our progress on this base." Not restricting her meant either they had nothing to hide or the confidential items were impossible for her to discover.

"I still have other business to attend to so I'll bid the three of you farewell now. Isumi, Shirogane, take care of the Lieutenant, okay? I already sent over all the details like her room and all that, so it shouldn't be hard for you two."

"Understood."

"Yeah, I got you covered." With that, the Vice-Commander left Yui and the Captains without another word.

To her bewilderment, neither Captains saluted Kouzuki on her way out. Similarly, the two didn't bother to act out military discipline when they entered as well.

 **PX**

"And that about covers it. Did we miss anything, Isumi?"

"No, I don't think so."

Yui's tour of Yokohama Base was lackluster, to say the least. First, she wasn't even shown around one third of the hangers and what she did see was only Gekishins, Fubukis and Shiranuis.

Second, whereas she already picked up on the fact that there was no town outside the base, she didn't think that the base would be limited to only the factices on the hilltop alone. Unlike her old home, Yukon Base which had a small city surrounding it filled with civilian housings. There was nothing at Yokohama save for the base itself.

Having said that, the most essential reason for her unstated boredom was from a different cause altogether.

"And thus concludes your tour of our grand base, 1st Lt. Takamura. Any questions?"

"I cannot say that I have seen this base in its entirely based on the fact that everything below underground level 22 is off limits." Yui fired back for Shirogane's displeasing attitude, but the young man only slugged off the damage done.

"Well, we showed you everything you needed to see. What you didn't see today doesn't exist."

"…I understand, but please know that all that I have witnessed, perceived or comprehended will be included in my report." Yui was never a person to back down from a threat.

"Is that so? Haha, then please know that where we're now, Alternative IV could pretty much sway the opinion of the UN council by presenting an argument, any argument. That is including and not limited to finally shutting down even a program belonging to the Japan and America. " Opting for a more direct method of blackmail, Yui widened her eyes from Shirogane's proclamation.

"…" There was nothing she could have said as a comeback to a very realistic possibility.

"Your development project isn't doing too well, right? Maybe we can help with that. Or, we can help it out." Yui held down the bitterness in her heart from this man's provocation.

"…I think your point has been made clear, Capt. Shirogane. 1st Lt. Takamura very clearly understands her position." It was Isumi who came to Yui's aid.

"Huhu, if you say so, Isumi. Huhuhu."

"If the tour is over, I would like to return to my room." Believing for there to be no benefit left if she was to stick around, Yui called for an early dismissal.

"We can't tell you where to go, First Lieutenant. Do whatever you want, other than what you can't do."

"Then if you will excuse me."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

And there she goes, what a free spirited person. Kinda made me feel dumb for still standing in the PX when there were chairs all around us.

Takamura was definitely a beauty, as a man I must grant points where points were due. Her figure was just… very natural and elegant. Takamura's every step was carried out with a sense of pride for her own origin. Even when the situation was plainly not in her favour, Takamura still didn't forget the reverence for her name.

Also that hair, I haven't seen natural hair in so long that I thought she had a hundred pins stuck up there until I inspected closely during the guide. Living with girls that styled themselves in Zaku haircuts was probably ruining my attractiveness perception.

"That was quite unnecessary of you, Shirogane. Why did you bully the Lieutenant to that extent?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Isumi. I was only righteously demonstrating my right, you should understand." As we were now, I could allow myself some leeway in my dealing with Takamura. Her unfavourable position left her with little ground to stand on.

"She is an officer from the Royal Guards, you know?"

"And what does that matter?"

"…Nothing… I guess. Say, I know I shouldn't be asking you this; but what did you do with the Shogun during the coup?" I let out a short laugh in response to Isumi letting her curiosity take over her discipline.

"Come on, now. You know I can't talk."

"Yeah, didn't think so. It's just with the sudden support from the Imperial Diet for Alternative IV blew up after the coup. With the current election mess going on and all, I thought it's too unusual. They're even rumour of the Honour Guards wishing to supply us with their Type-00s, which normally never happens."

"You for real? How come I didn't hear about that?"

"Huh? The Professor didn't tell you?" Now that was surprising. If Yuuko-sensei was planning on giving the Takemikazuchis to Isumi's team alone, we're going to have quite a fight. And sensei should know that I am not one for losing any one-on-ones.

"No she did not. Luckily I don't care too much right now, got a mission coming up so I have to focus on that."

"For your team? Isn't the squad all cadets until recently?" How insulting, Isumi should know that Kasumi was very experienced. And Sumika… was Sumika.

"That's why we got to train, hard. Besides, we're an independent unit. Missions your team can't legally handle get passed on to us."

"I see, good luck in your training then, Shirogane. I gotta run and find Hayase, she's probably skipping her paperwork again."

"—huh, you talking about me, Captain?" Just like that, a wild Hayase suddenly appeared. Along with her was Suzumiya, the tag-team combo.

"How rare, did you give up trying to abandon your duty?"

"That's mean, Captain. I finished today's share already. There weren't much to write when literally nothing happened." Was I being ignored? I felt like I was being ignored.

"Oi, Hayase. You blind?"

"Huh? Ah, sorry Shirogane. Missed you." This girl was just like the old me, except for that she wasn't secretly the same rank as I was.

"Err, Mitsuki. You shouldn't address Capt. Shirogane like that!" At least Suzumiya knew her manners.

"Haa…? Oh, right. Sorry, C-aptain, S-hirogane. Your title doesn't roll off the tongue too well."

"You're going to roll off the roof very well if this keeps up, 1st Lt. Hayase. I suggest you practice your etiquettes before a sudden demotion hits your ego." Suzumiya and Isumi giggled softly off to the sides as the spitting contest between me and Hayase took off.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Suuup, sensei. You done with your stuff?"

"Yep, checked the railgun myself. Nothing wrong with them." Taking my reserved spot on the same sofa, I discussed today's inspection with sensei.

—

"I won't say she's a threat, sensei. Takamura is part of the Royal Guards as of now, so that means I can just use Meiya's name to clear us of any problems."

"I see, Mitsurugi has been somewhat restored of her status as a royal family member. Besides, if the Ministry of Defence decided to send an Honour Guard for their inspection, that means they're not allowed to use their own."

Having Takamura here instead of some IJA personal must also be related to Yuuhi's current policy. As things stood now, let's just say the Royal houses don't have the greatest relationship with the opposing parties in the Government.

Yuuhi's election is going to take place soon, the fate of this nation hanged in a balance. Whoever controls her will have this country, and I just happened to have reserved Yuuhi since the beginning.

"So what do you think of her, Shirogane? Good girl?"

"…Errm… I kinda like her. If I can get pass that hard-ass barrier of hers, I can have her dancing to my tunes." I held a neutral opinion regarding playing others, as in I'll do it if it helps whatever my goal is.

"Well, I mean; what is moral, right? You probably don't know."

"Sure, sure. I do think we got pretty intimate when I was in Yukon. Then again, I wasn't sure of the exact relationship we had." Maybe we were together, maybe not. Old memories slip me by too often for me to realize at this point.

"Huhu, this actually makes me curious. Is there a girl on this base you haven't done?" The answer to sensei's strange question took much longer to come out than I would like to admit.

"Not counting anyone I don't know and Kyozuka-oba-chan, who I am one hundred percent certain. I can't think of another untouched face."

"Jesus Christ, you an animal or something?" Many have called me out for being very alpha, I approve.

"That's just mean. I… am very free when it comes to my sexual preferences."

"Still, so like everyone here on base? What about Isumi, you went with her before?" Reminiscing the more pleasant times in my loops brought a smug smile to my mouth.

"Think so, we did that right on that desk."

"Nooooo, that's like, disgusting. So what was it like? Give me details." What a magnificent one-eighty turn of attitude, guess entertaining sensei with my love stories wouldn't be too destructive.

"I can't remember what happened before we got here. We entered, you weren't here. Both of us came back from a tough battle and the hormones went to work. It was a good time indeed; great climax when Isumi gave herself a golden shower." After the initial shock, sensei rolled back in her seat and laughed like mad.

"Hahaha…! You're not joking about this, right? Please tell me you're serious."

"No mistake, sensei. It was just a fun time all around."

"Hahahaha! That Isumi… how did that happen anyway? Tell me everything." Yuuko-sensei got overly excited about my personal tales.

—

"That's about what I expected form you, Shirogane. So how did she react?"

"She's the kind of a passive person, not really dominant like me; not that submissive either, just not aggressive." My first impression was that Isumi never tried that hard, probably because I wasn't her number one.

"In retrospect, you're definitely not a passive person yourself. Probably the most dominant person I've ever met, no doubt." That couldn't be closer to the truth.

"Guess you're right, I haven't been on the bottom since god knows when."

"Tell me another one, how about that other Royal Guard? Tsukuyomi, was it?"

"Yeah, Tsukuyomi Mana. I banged her in one of my earlier loops. Can't remember the details but it got really messy, especially after her three lackeys walked in on us. Did pop her rear, so that's a plus." Yuuko-sensei covered her mouth and escalated her laughing.

"Wowow, up the butt? You have fetishes."

"Again, just rude, I think of them as services."

"Sure! Sure, that works too. Alright, you got to give me the juiciest one here. Have you, or have you not; done it with Marimo?" That would be where most of sensei's interest laid.

"Yes… but I prefer not to think about that… too much." Recalling my time with Marimo-chan sent a thousand shivers down my spine. She was… untameable, very untameable.

"Huhuhu… ahh, you're a great man, Shirogane. Whatever, Being the Causality Conductor, I won't be surprised if you have a chick magnet up your ass." Why does everyone think it's up my rear? Can't it be somewhere friendly and nice? Like in my pocket or something?

"That's enough of that. I heard that the Honour Guard are thinking of sending us some Type-00s, that a fact?"

"No, it's nowhere near 'a fact'. There're rumours, sure. Nothing we can confirm as of now, that's why I didn't tell you." What a simple and understandable resolution. The upset in my mind dispersed immediately afterwards.

"Fine, as for my side. The team is training hard these days; they have great potential, like I told you. However, we really need to know what to do for this operation."

"That makes the two of you, Shirogane. The DIA is also asking for our plans."

"What you gonna tell them? I would greatly appreciate it if they would exchange information instead of dumping all their files and running off." It wasn't very good manners to leave us all of their mess.

"I would like that too, no shit. However, they're saying they know nothing more than we do."

"Can I trust that?" Sensei only shrugged her shoulders as an answer.

"Dunno. We're on our own for now, not gonna make much progress if we don't have information."

"Then what do we have?"

"I'm coming up with a mission plan but some details are missing from the picture. For example, we don't know Bridges' exact location other than he and the twins are somewhere in Russia."

"Tsk, really can't do much then." I clicked my tongue in frustration.

"Except one thing, if someone knows Bridges' heading, it would be the yellow suit sent by the Ministry. She was the last person to see Bridges and the twins before they disappeared off the map."

"Takamura had a history with Bridges, that's for sure. Her report said that she fought against him in the second Phase 3 when he deserted with the twins. The exact relationship statues between the two are fuzzy at best, still she must know something about him."

"So you want me to just dig those out of her, right?" Yuuko-sensei responded with an evil nod.

"Done. I can manipulate someone like her easily, either mentally or emotionally. Nothing to brag about, skills are skills after all." As long as my façade can handle it, I can wear any mask I please.

 **Author's note**

Now we're finally starting to pull that TE plot into here, good times all around. The focus of this story will still be on Takeru and his side but maybe some characters will stick around after the arc ends, who knows?

There's also the Sahckaomarken, (the German story, I can't spell that.) anime coming out soon. Smart people have already played the Japanese VN, unfortunately I don't speak moon-speak so I'll just watch the anime like a normal person. I don't want to decide on anything right away but if the show is good and usable. I could make some stuff connect.

Again, don't forget to favourite, follow and review. Also, while I do play a lot of games and stuff. If you seriously want guides, please check trustworthy sources on the internet, not me. I just play them.

BETA done by chad001, something, something got infinite tests all day.


	22. Policy changes

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 13, 2001**

 **Hallway**

"~But I could FAA~DEE~ away! ~Tomorrow never comes! ~AND that's OKAY!~" To get better at singing, one must practice wholeheartedly.

"~Stand tall for the Beast of America~! Lay down like a nak—"

"I find it to be highly offensive for you to be singing such a song, Capt. Shirogane." A very unentertained voice called me out from the where I wasn't paying attention to.

"C'mon now, Tsukuyomi-chan. Music is a form of expression, and you have to admit there's nothing wrong with America's freedom."

"Hum, very well. I will say the concept of democracy is appealing to certain groups of individuals to a certain extent." That was such a passive aggressive thing for her to say, which was a big improvement from Tsukuyomi's normal pure aggression.

"Gee, thanks, Tsukuyomi-chan."

"You will stop addressing me by that name this instant." The way she announced her demand left not much room for argument. Further trolling could lead to unwanted provocation.

"Alright, good seeing you, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi."

"Likewise, Capt. Shirogane. It appears I owe you yet another gratitude for your recent success during the trials." She gave me a firm salute in response.

"No need, I did what I did to protect this base and everyone in my team. It is unrelated to how your subordinate owes Meiya for saving her life.' I reminded her of that slipup just because.

"Huhu, I will make sure Kamiyo shows her gratefulness to Meiya-sama in due time. However, that is not my reason to meeting you today." Bullshit, she said it like she was looking for me; we totally just ran into each other on accident.

"Yeah? Yeah, okay! Sure you were looking for me!" Tsukuyomi shot me an irritated glare but ignored me regardless.

"As I was saying, I have sought after you for a serious topic. Let us find a more suitable location to discuss."

"Whatever you say."

 **That classic tree behind Hakuryou**

'Why does every motherfucker I ever secretly speak to feel the need to bring me out here? I mean, the tree is nice and all; but it's fucking December! At least Santa Clause is fat enough! I ain't got body mass to burn!'

Of course, I didn't say that to Tsukuyomi.

"Please go ahead, 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi. The temperature is not the best."

"Logically. As you know, Her Highness has recently overtook majority of the government duties before the election. And along many of the political changes she has made, one of them will directly involve our current standing." She motioned her fingers between herself and me.

"That decision being to integrate the Mitsurugi bloodline into the Koubuin Regent House, thus making the heir of the Mitsurugi part of the Koubuin Household." I was sure that meant… something.

Now if only my memoires about all this loyalty stuff from when I was with Yuuhi returned, I could finish the train of thought for Tsukuyomi.

"That would translate to Meiya-sama being officially recognized as related to Her Highness once again." Tsukuyomi noticed my confusion and filled me in.

"Ahhh… wow! Isn't that like… amazing!?"

"Indeed, Meiya-sama may need to appear to the public sometime in the near future." Tsukuyomi flashed a rare smile of satisfaction.

"How are the other Regent Houses taking this decision? I can't think of them as welcoming it with open arms."

"That is also a fact. I will just say that… there are many conflicts brewing behind the scenes. However, Her Highness has taken a firm stand by her verdict." Yuuhi was surely being a badass these days.

"So is Her Highness just saying 'fuck you, my conclusion.' to the other Regent Houses?" Tsukuyomi very publicly face-palmed at me.

"…Yes, if you must add vulgarity to understand the situation, then yes."

"Alright, I got you now." She came out of her face-palm with a shaking head of disappointment.

"Anyway, due to this, I will be reassigned back to the capital temporary by the order of Her Highness."

"Really now? I would think you'll be needed by Meiya with all this mess going on, she could be targeted." That just became a very real possibility.

"True, however this most likely is a test for Meiya-sama. Her Highness wishes to see if Meiya-sama is capable of handling such responsibilities, being an official Regent of the Koubuin Household."

"Also, this is a test for you as well, Shirogane Takeru." Now that was unexpected.

"How so?"

"Her Highness wishes to see if you and your team are capable of protecting Meiya-sama during this period, as you are all unofficial vassal retainers for the Koubuin Household." Does working two-sided meant I could get pay checks from both ends of this deal?

"Huh, that's cool, I guess." I did not let my excitement show.

"Hmph, you better be as competent as your attitude shows, Shirogane Takeru. For failure here equals to failing Her Highness."

"Which will never happen so don't even worry about it." I gave Tsukuyomi a fast nod of confidence.

"Very well then, our departure is sometime this week. This will probably be the last time we speak. Farewell, Shirogane Takeru, do not disappoint Her Highness the Shogun." With an elaborate flick of her hair, Tsukuyomi left me alone under the cold sky.

She also forced me to wait until she fully left the field as I was going in the same direction.

 **Simulation Chamber**

"Get in from pod two to eight based on your callsign." I nodded toward the simulators that my squad should enter.

Today was our first training session with the new simulation system, namely the updated JIVES. With this, we should have imitated combat scenarios with a calculation error lower than two percent.

The outward opening portal slowly sealed down as I strapped in my seat, the retina projector sprung to life after a couple of eye scans. While the scene before me was still nonexistent, I could perceive the faces of all my team members.

"—err, T-Takeru-s-san! I have a question here!" Tama called for my attention.

"—what you want?"

"Emm, I don't think we have a motto or an emblem for our Squadron yet!" Her reminder from the left field hit me like a ton of bricks on a ton of trucks.

"Ohhhhh… Yooou're right about that… Fuuu—" I gave myself a quick slap for that mistake.

"—haha! Takeru-chan, you idiot!" A certain childhood friend of mine just signed her death warrant.

"—should we think of one now?" Mikoto joined the conversation normally for once.

"Naaah, we still have time before being deployed. Can just make one in the meantime. Any volunteers up for some design making?" I patiently waited for answer nobody was brave enough to deliver.

"—I'll do it if no one else wants to." Save for one unique reply.

"For real? Thanks, Class rep."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll make the emblem at least." She shrugged kindly and smiled back.

"Great! Then let's boot up the system! I'll explain the situation once we're loaded in." Ending our shot talk nicely, I clicked a few buttons which lid up my screen.

—

"—you do that again, I'll kill you."

"—Uwa…! I'm very sorry, Takeru-chan!" Maybe such a severe approach wasn't desirable, but Sumika just couldn't stop getting in my way.

Dumb girl just almost shot my sword which was plunged into a fictional Grappler-class. Trying to steal my kill was fine, but virtually hitting me was not.

"—Damn it, Archangel 4! Do not shoot ahead of me!"

"—Urg, you're moving too unpredictably, Mitsurugi! I can't cover you like this!"

"That role belongs to Tamase! Do not attempt to assist where you are not needed!" Watching an argument break out between Meiya and Class rep out of all people was most unforeseen.

If the two of the most calm people in my squad were verbally fighting with each other, what would be of the rest of the team?

"—Move it, Archangel 6!"

"—Stop it, Kei-san! The missiles will hit you!"

"—please move, Miki-san. I can't shoot."

"—Awawa… Takeru-san is blocking my path!"

—

What a goddamn disaster of a first battle. We were all dead in seventeen minutes after the simulation started. And to think we all got so hyped about our first run with the new system too. It was an easy mission, really. Classic Hive infiltration using data collected by the Volk Regiment, shout out to those Russians on a side note, never forget.

We were supposed to enter the Hive and destroy its reactor in under ninety minutes. It should have been a walk in the park, albeit a very difficult to traverse park. My team somehow fell apart the second we had to engage multiple targets and everything else just went to shit afterwards.

"Holy crap…" I muttered to myself as I exited the pod to meet up with the team. We sat around in the simulation room, some on chairs and crates while others rested on the floor.

"Someone, throw me a drink." Per my request, two different bottles of water came flying at me. Fortunately, my superb reflexes kicked in and I caught both before they could impact my head.

"Ah…"

"Er…" Sumika and Meiya stared at each other briefly before awkwardly turning their gaze elsewhere.

The silence was exceedingly harrowing, not one person chose to speak any words regarding our below average performance. In some ways, that felt like our first defeat since the beginning of our training.

"Sumika! How was your loadout?" Might as well start a new topic.

"Huh? I was Strike Vanguard, right?" How could she have forgotten her temporary role?

"Yeah, dumbass. So how was it?"

"…I don't know! Everything got so clustered I didn't even have anything to shoot at." I leaned back and sighed hard at her pointless declaration.

"Alright, we're taking a break. Go wherever you want, just be back in fifteen." After some lacklustre salutes, my team spilt up and all went their own way.

—

"Capt. Shirogane, good morning." A humourless voice made itself apparent behind me. Turning myself around, my mood was somehow worsened by the presence of Takamura.

I planned on reviewing the recording of our simulation in the Command Center, though it seemed another person had the same idea.

"1st Lt. Takamura, aye. Come to have some good fun, did you?" I was too tired to add sarcasm into my voice, but since she noticed my hostility, it all worked out.

"Not the case, Capt. Shirogane. I watched your simulation from here the entire time." What a boring answer.

"And what did you think, 1st Lieutenant? It was perfect, right? I know." This time, the cynicism was delivered with just the right amount of salt.

"Do you mind if I share my opinion?" My gaze on her was filled with contradiction. No matter how I cut it, what she said just didn't feel like an insult.

"Alright, I'm listening."

"First of all, if we are to discount the fact that this unit has no command post operator; I believe for this one reason to be the cause of your performance." That reminded me, we still don't have a CP Officer like the Valkyries. Maybe I can bribe Suzumiya into switching sides.

"Don't keep me waiting, Lieutenant."

"To be honest. Your entire team is too competent, Captain." …Wait, what?

"…Competent? You sure you didn't miss some letters here?"

"No. From what I saw, your Vanguards were too good at killing the closest enemies that they moved their sight onto the further ones. Which took the job of your Gun Sweeper, she then moved her sight onto the flanks and killed many BETA around there."

"The Gun Interceptors, whose job is to watch the flanks had nothing to scan, so they charged ahead and assisted the frontline which became crowded. Making the Rush Guard's job of taking down more dangerous enemies less crucial because all targets on the front were already dead."

"So she started to watch the sides and further back, areas that should be covered by the Blast Guard."

That was like… super impressive of her. Takamura nailed down some of the problems floating in my head with such precise use of vocabs.

"…You're saying that my team is fighting too much for the kills?"

"Not exactly, your team is very proficient at eliminating hostiles; all of the hostiles, that is. Because how quickly you're killing the enemies, you ended up running out of targets and moving on to threats outside of your zone."

"So our teamwork is weak?" Takamura pondered for a little while.

"No, it is the opposite. Most other units out there have trouble with killing the BETA that is right in front of them, this squad was so efficient at slaying BETA that they all got killed too fast. But because the cluster nature of combat, each member kept getting in another's way until somewhere a mistake happens and the formation falls apart, giving the BETA a chance to overrun you."

"However, we don't have a choice in this, right? We can't stop killing the BETA or else they'll become seriously dangerous. So we have to kill them fast, but killing them too fast throws us into a mess."

"I realize that, would you like to hear a suggestion?" I nodded after swallowing a bit of my pride.

"I recommend spitting the team up. Instead of a Company, have two flights or four Elements. Dividing your subordinates in a way that no one will be of nuisance to another."

"I see… I certainly haven't tried that out yet. Alright, we'll work on it." She twisted her lips just a little bit less before it forms a smile.

"I will accommodate your team as the CP operator for your next trial. I wish you good luck, Capt. Shirogane."

"Thanks, Takamura. We'll be up in ten."

 **Takamura Yui**

Yui glued her sight on the Archangel Squadron's Captain. Normally others would guess a feeling of the heart behind her stare, but no such thoughts zapped through Yui's mind.

She was much more interested in the mecha that he piloted, the same one as the giant with the appearance of an American Raptor stood splendidly within the hanger.

Yui noticed the two very distinct TSFs yesterday during her tour; lucklessly, given her position, she was in no place to ask any questions regarding the frames or their Eishis. Albeit the pilot of the Takemikazuchi wasn't difficult to assume.

"Yuuya…" A single line was mumbled within the soundless room.

Seeing Shirogane's TSF, she remembered the surface fighter she last saw her most important test pilot use. The uncanny resemblance between the two frames cannot be denied once someone laid their eyes on both. And seeing wasn't the least Yui had done, she too had piloted a machine of the same model herself, that was their last encounter before he ran off with another.

 **Takamura Yui**

 ****Day, October, 2001**

"…Huhu, hahaha… the heir of the Takamura family is always like this, huh…? You'll give her… what I didn't receive, right?" A single PB-Blade stuck out of the snow-covered land, a single TSF stood over the prints another had left.

Yui was alone now; he left, and he left Yui behind. He given up everything to be with her; he was the one who made that choice, the choice his father could not select. It was happiness that he deserved yet it was happiness he will not obtain.

Everything the young man fought for, everything that represented his life was gone now. Scarified for his new future, a future without Yui herself. The only certainty was that his tomorrow was uncertain. The order, the care, the friends and joy of daily life all vanished, thrown into the pit and never again will he find them.

"Please… give her… what we gave you…" The world was cruel, Yui knew this first hand, she knew all too well how things just never happen the way they're planned.

However, just like his tale, her fight has yet to end. The pen is still writing, and as long as there is still ink left, her own saga will not have its finale. She shall not permit an early ending, for the both of them.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **December 13, 2001**

 **Simulation Chamber**

Back to the present, Yui's interest in the team of eight only rose to greater heights. Seeing their almost perfect Captain with a team of almost perfect Eishis, Yui focused her thoughts away from how to best revive her project and instead on helping the team that needed a Command Post Officer.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"—here's the new formation. We'll split into two Flights. Flight A consists of Me, Meiya, Sumika and Kasumi, the forward Flight. Flight B will be Class rep, Ayamine, Tama and Mikoto, the backup Flight."

"Keep a constant distance of sixty metres from the other Flight unless the situation declares otherwise. Forward Flight will only takedown hostiles that post an immediate danger to the team, leave all scraps for the backup Flight."

Sitting inside my pod and watching the battle map linked with the rest of the Archangel, I was reluctant to try out the new combat tactic provided by Takamura.

This was a bad circumstance in so many ways. If what Takamura suggested worked flawlessly, that would mean I owe her big time. If her plan failed to bring my team together, then we were simply just fucked.

"—this is Command Post to all units. 100 seconds until the operation begins. Check all weapon and TSF systems." Some girls got confused by the sudden addition of a CP Officer, I just waved off their questions for later.

"Flight A's leader will be me, Flight B's leader will be Class rep. We can change around the setup later to better balance the Platoons, but this should work for the time being."

"Command Post to all units. The Operation begins in 3… 2… 1. Operation start."

—

"Operation complete. Result as follows: Mission time, seventy-three minutes. Friendly casualty, Archangel 4 and 7, K.I.A. Archangel 8 and 6, Heavy damage to TSF. Archangel 2, 3 and 4, minor damage to TSF. Overall rating, eighty-five percent."

—

"We succeeded the mission, Takeru. Should you not brighten your mood more dramatically?"

"If that was a success, then I can confidently say that humanity has never lost a battle before." Meiya gently patted my back, trying to comfort me after our supposed victory.

I honestly wasn't feeling despondent from the simulation, it was just I had no reason to rejoice neither. We completed the mission, sure. We did blow up the reactor with the S-11 in my unit.

However, it was just not enough, it was nowhere near enough for me. If it was back in my first loop, then maybe I can see how it technically could count as a win. Nonetheless, from where I am standing now; losing two members and leaving behind three more was just absolutely unacceptable.

"Now that I recalled. I apologize for my earlier behaviour, Sakaki. Please forgive me."

"Ah… no, no! I was the one at fault, Mitsurugi! There isn't a need for you to apologize!" After pulling the responsibility back-and-forth a bit longer, those two finally decided to place down an equal blame.

"How was this run compared to your last, everyone?" A much more pleasant Sumika asked us once she joined the circle of friends.

"It was sooo much better than before!"

"Right, right?! I actually did very good! Even if I ended up injured… ahehe."

"I got killed off… but the team won."

"Yeah… guess we did end up dying." To zero fault of their own, I must add. Ayamine and Class rep volunteered to stay back and clear the BETA reinforcements after we took a wrong turn at the main hall. I probably should contribute that mistake to my own misdirection, the truth was that the map we were given was actually flawed as an added challenge.

"Still, everyone did super good!"

"We won."

"Indeed we did. However, that is not near sufficient for this team, is that right?"

"Meiya got the idea here. Sure we did good, but good isn't good enough for us. I don't want a single casualty to take place as long as I am in charge. I want all of you to be the best Eishis possible under my command. Until then, keep striving for that perfect record. Dying in the simulator is about seventeen hundred percent better than dying for real. You all got me?"

"Yes, sir!" The morale around me was rapidly raised back up to eleven. I shined a terse smile until Takamura' voice interrupted our joy.

—

"You truly are someone special, Capt. Shirogane. No leaders out there perch about having a zero casualty these days." She just had to pour cold water over my dream.

I met up with the Royal Guard once more to discuss a more refined strategy as a replacement for our first one. It was loyally bothersome how Takamura held the upper hand, and it was even more vexing how she herself was unaware of such lead on me.

"At least you got the special part right. The reason for it is simple, I won't have anyone on my team die."

"Is that so? Hmh, let's find out if your child-like dream can handle the reality." That was just pissy of her, although it was expected from a princess of her calibre.

"Just watch me."

—

"This will be the team formation for the final time. We'll work with four Elements of two. To ensure maximum kill radius and decrease chances of friendly fire or exasperation for your allies, all Elements are to keep a minimum distance of fifty-five metres apart. No Element is to fire on enemies thirty metres away from their position unless threatened by said target."

"Me and Meiya are Element A, the Vanguards. We'll be charging the enemies head on and killing the hostiles viewed as the most dangerous. Sumika and Kasumi are Element B, the Sweepers. They're accountable for killing off majority of the enemies in our way and dumping bullets on the ones outside our kill-zone."

"Third is Element C, Mikoto and Tama, the Clear Guards, we'll call them. They're the ones who'll clean off any targets left by the first two Elements. But more importantly is managing our flanks and providing cover fire when necessary."

"Finally is Element D, Class rep and Ayamine, rear Gun Interceptors. Their job is to watch our back and further reduce the enemies from our sides. They should be the last line of offence so anything they don't touch gets to live."

"Leave behind any hostiles outside your kill radius as we don't have enough bullets to take on everything. We're prioritizing speed and precision of our kills; never slow down without a good justification and don't get caught off guard."

"One last thing, this formation is for situations where the Laser-class is a nonissue. We'll develop a different strategy for anti-Laser and anti-TSF, just not for now."

Well, that was the longest explanation I ever did, maybe. Must be very boring for those who didn't understand what I was saying, seen as Ayamine almost fell asleep twice during that.

"CP to all units, operation begins in thirty seconds."

"Alright team, let's make this thing work. Don't die on me now, understand?"

"Roger!" And with that, we blasted off into a simulated world of our hated foes.

 **December 14, 2001**

 **Simulation Chamber**

"Arugaha… fuuuccck meee…!" Finally, at long last, it was over. Jesus… finally over.

"…To all units… uur, Operation… complete. Results are as follows: Mission time, 22 mi-minutes and eight secon—… no, wait… s-six seconds. A-arr, friendly casualty… none. O-overall rating, a hundred… and one percent." Those were the last words from Takamura before she felt face-first on the control panels back in the Command Post, at least the noise told me so.

"Ohhaa… god, that was… ahhha…" At the moment, I couldn't feel a single part of my body that wasn't in excruciating agony. Barring the parts where I couldn't even sense.

"Taaakeeruuu-channn… time…?" Sumika's usual cheerful face was scarred heavily from her lack of sleep. The only benefit from her behaviour was that I understood exactly how detailed her robot features were. They were too real.

"Shut your mouth…"

"…It is three, I think. In the afternoon…" Answering Sumika in the dullest tone I ever heard from Meiya, she shut her eyes and concentrated on nothing to prevent her fatigue from leaking out; which only ended in failure when her head bumped the screen in front of her.

"Everyone else here…?" Forcing myself to act the role of squad leader, I had to check on all others in my care.

"Yeah… I'm here…" Mikoto answered first with huge dark circles under her eyes.

"…Takeru-san, can we please… leave now?" Tama was basically crying at this point. On the plus side, this was the perfect time for her panda cosplay to take off. Only if she wasn't registered as the cat girl already.

"…I want to take a bath." As if the bunny ears shielded her, Kasumi's limiters dangled down in front of her face, making her expression unreadable.

"I'm hungry…" Ayamine also called out her first instinct.

"Hey, Class rep, can you hear me?" No response came from the glasses wearing Chizuru.

"Sakaki died… let's bury her."

"Arghaa…! fuck off… Ayamine— Ah! Sorry." A curse, a curse from Class rep! That was how worn-out she got after our training.

This was totally like how I used to study for a test the day before I had it. Except this being ten times more painful.

At the beginning, we agreed on a run with less than fifty minutes and one death. That goal got beat in two runs, very lackluster for sure. So we upped the ante with the goal of forty minutes, no death and above ninety percent. It all snowballed from there on out. Our final ambition, was under twenty-four minutes, no injury and ninety-nine percent rating.

How we arrived at that ridiculous objective? I don't remember, but we did it. We somehow pulled that victory out of our asses twelve hours after the first try.

"We should disembark now… what do y'all think?" Eventually I did recover enough to speak properly again, for the most part.

"Yeah… agreed." Multiple replies came from the crew at different intervals, all of them had the same idea.

"Let's go then. We're dismissed for today."

And like that, our hellhole of a training period came to a conclusion twenty-nine hours later. With no breaks in between, I was surprised nobody died of any kind of heart attack, for real; we didn't even use stimulus or drugs to keep us up. We just somehow did it.

 **December 15, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

There are many ways to greet the morning; some do it with a smile, other hangs a frown over their face. In spite of that, I was pretty sure my case was one, if not the best method of waking up.

"…Mrm… nmff… nnumrn… "

"What…? What's going on here?" I awoke with a strange sensation and two large shapes under my blanket.

"Muura…! Ah! Morning, Takeru-chan!"

"…Nmuura… morning… Takeru."

What. A. Nice. Surprise!

"I know what you two are doing, but no. I must ask, what do you two think you're doing?"

"Well, I woke up around four today because we all went to bed in the afternoon, right? So I thought about coming here and waking up Takeru-chan!"

"…Ran into Sumika, we both had the same idea." If these kind excuses were enough, why did we even fight wars?

"Yeah, okay. You two snuck into my room, so what's next? How did this happen again?"

"Because when we came in you were still asleep!"

"It was too easy…" I should add an obstacle course next time for anyone that tries to sneak in my bed.

"Okay, I'll let that go too. But most importantly. How did this, this here. Happen?"

"Well… Takeru-chan was just toooo cute when sleeping, you see! And then Kei-san suggested for— Ah! Kei-san! Don't start without me!"

"Nuumrrun… too much talking… numuum… got bored." With that, Ayamine went back to work.

"Ahaa! That's not fair! Me too!" How they could be fighting over this. I honestly didn't know.

"Sto-nmu-p! You're being too greedy, Kei-san!"

"Mnuurarn… it's an unforgiving world… Nururma…"

"You two, did your parents teach you not to speak with your mouth full? Jesus, why does that kind of stuff even happens…" It may appear that I was complaining on the outside. The truth; however, was that I also complained on the inside, for not waking up earlier.

—

"Gochisosama deshita!"

"Gochiso…" That was one way to treat it.

"How was it for you?"

"Did you like it, Takeru-chan?"

"Uggh… just go clean up in the washroom, don't you dare go anywhere else with that on your faces." The saving grace was that nothing wetted my bed, thank god.

—

"It was a bit bitter… very sticky."

"I know, right? Maybe Takeru-chan is eating too much meat these days."

"Don't think it works like that… there're some stuck in my throat."

"You okay? Here's some water."

"Thanks… urgh… washed it down."

Why was I listening in on my own room?

 **PX**

With that extremely exciting morning behind us, we marched our train to the PX for some early breakfast.

"Alley-oop!" The Yakisoba bread was passed from me to Sumika then dunked into Ayamine's mouth in one swift motion.

"Munch, munch… munch, munch. Delicious." Nine seconds flat, a new record.

"Here is yours. Where's Kasumi, by the way?" A normal breakfast was handed to Sumika instead.

"Thanks, Takeru-chan. She's still sleeping back in our room, yesterday really tired her out." Only made sense, no normal human being could withstand almost thirty hours of constant activity and not be drained of energy.

"How you doing, Ayamine? You okay?"

"…Call me Kei." Right, forgot about that.

"Then Kei, you doing fine now?"

"Yeah… your life juice was very refreshing." That was just unnecessarily sexual.

"I won't say a word regarding that. All the same, I do want to know how you and Sumika came to an agreement." Hearing her own name, Sumika jumped to attention and begun explaining the tale.

"I went and talked with Kei-san after her first night. Then she agreed to sharing!"

"…That it?"

"Yup! Kei-san said she's okay with it!" I chuckled dryly at this uninspiring story of Ayamine's recruitment.

"You sure you're fine with this, Kei? Sumika isn't the only one, you know?"

"…I'm fine… having more people is kinda fun." If she said so.

"Still, Kei-san. I can't believe you would suggest something like that!" I, on the other hand; believed it perfectly.

"It was a great chance… Takeru enjoys that kind of releases—"

"—Huh? You all are very early this morning." Meiya popped out of the woodwork from nowhere.

"Hallo, everyone!"

"You three are already here, strange. Normally Takeru never makes his roll call on time." Following after Meiya were Mikoto and Class rep, all surprised to see the trio of us. We shared some casual greeting and waited for the newcomers to grab their meal.

"So what conversation transpired before our arrival?"

"Yeah, yeah! Something about Takeru's release, was it? I'm interested!" That one went on Meiya's tab for bringing it back up, I'll dish out some pain later.

"Don't worry about that, we were only talkin—"

"Sumika and I were servicing him." My attempt at distracting them with a lie was destroyed by none other than Ayamine herself.

"Awawa! Don't tell them that, Kei-san! It's super embarrassing!" And the last chance at an escape was stamped down with Sumika's blab.

"Huuuuh? That's like, super suspicious!"

"Indeed, you would not… be hiding any secrets from us. Would you? Takeru?" Mikoto and Meiya focused their causeless rage on me alone, as always.

"Just wait a second here, everyone just calm down and—"

"Wait… servicing him…? Don't tell me?!" If Class rep didn't pick up that detail right then, I was sure she wouldn't be able to live with herself. Yep! Good reason! Absolutely had to notice that one line!

"God no, don't be jumping to conclusions—"

"We were eating him…" No way out.

"Welp!" I just gave up at this point. Why even try when the universe was wanting to let the cat out? Might as well just go with the flow.

"Aaaaha! Keeeei-saaann! NOOOO!"

"Eating…!?"

"Wh-what does that mean?!"

"You three can't be doing—"

"Fellatio… double." Annnnd… there went everyone's innocence, kinda proud I kept it this long. The smoke from Mikoto brain almost triggered the fire detectors around the base, if only those things could sense human temperatures.

"EEEEEH…! WAIT, WHAT?! What did you just… Ehhhhh?!"

"WHAT?! W-w-whaaaa…! What?!" Instant reactions came from glasses and flat chest, while our samurai only sat peacefully without making a scene.

"AWAWAWA…! Keeei-sannnn! Whyyyy!?" Sumika's eyes widened ridiculously in size and her tears should be enough to support any country in need of drinkable water for years. Seriously, it was like she transformed into a fountain.

"Even Ayamine is ahead of me… this is indeed troublesome." Off to the side, Meiya whispered her predicament to herself.

"Waiiiit! W-w-why did you do that with Takeru!?"

"Ye-yeah! Give me a good reason!" At least Class rep and Mikoto weren't savage enough to just jump me or the girls.

"Sumika… want to try first?" The two uninformed females mollified a bit after I passed them some water, not Sumika's tears.

"Eh? Me? I guess it's because we both love Takeru-chan…?" For reference, I totally gave them some water just to watch this happen.

"Pffffft!" In sync with each other, both Class rep and Mikoto spit out their mouthful of water straight ahead.

"Agaa! Watch where you hawk that, women! Don't get my clothes wet now."

"W-Whaaaa!?"

"S-s-soo you two— No, no! You t-three! You three are ALL IN A RELATIONSHIP!?" Mikoto was mentally flying away while Class rep pretty much dumped a bucket of red paint right over herself as she somehow flustered this question out.

"Guess you can say it like that, yeah."

"Takeru is mine… but I share." I playfully chopped Ayamine when she linked arm with me.

"Ah-ah-ah… so like… you three… are all together!?"

"You're not counting me—"

"Yep, pretty much. Unless we're missing someone here—"

"Takeru-san always forgets about me." True, very true. Now who said that?

"Good morning, Kei-san, Sumika-san." Right, it was Kasumi. How could she keep accusing me of neglecting her?

"Ah, morning, Kasumi-chan! Tamase-san!" Two out three of the lolis joined us in the PX, both Kasumi and Tama were holding their trays of food as I made room for them on the benches.

"Morning… Kasumi, Tamase." Following Sumika, Ayamine also greeted the duo.

"Good morning, everyone!" Finally taking the two shortest girls into account, I greeted Tama normally while giving Kasumi a spice of modernism.

"Ossu, Kasumi."

"Ossu, Takeru-san." Kasumi raised her arm mechanically and clapped it with mine.

"Hello, Kasumi and Tamase… wait… Kasumi, what did you say about Takeru?" Mikoto finally came back to her senses.

"Takeru-san always forgets about me." Maybe if Kasumi wasn't so unnoticeable, things would change.

"Huh? What're we talking about?" The uninformed Tama was uninformed.

"Just watch… it'll be fun." Quickly hiding the details, Ayamine explained without any actual explanation.

"Really? Okay then." Smiling with such an innocent beam, I feared for Tama's purity after hearing our topic.

"No, no, no! The part before that! Kasumi… are you also…?" Class rep was shooting me this half fearful half disrespectful look from across the table.

"Yes. I also love Takeru-san." Mikoto's mind just blasted off for the third time in five minutes. Luckily, Class rep said no words and just sat extremely still on her own.

"For Kasumi to be in front of me…!? Takeru! Who else do you share a relationship with?!" Finally a reply from Meiya, I was worried that she wasn't interested in our dispute.

"Whaaat…?! Mitsurugi!? You too?!" Class rep jumped at another new reveal.

"How many now…?"

"Currently? Let's see… I got Sumika, you, Ayamine, Kasumi and maybe Yuuko-sensei? But then again, she did say something about 'the bond being only physical' or whatever. So she probably doesn't count."

Six vastly different expressions were observed just then. Ayamine closed her eyelids to a meek line with a gaze directed on Kasumi. Having become somewhat resilient to surprises, Class rep just let out a big sigh followed by another face-palm.

Mikoto was on her way sailing off to wonderland, I'll fetch her back sometime in the near future. Sumika was just happily living her life so I didn't provoke her more than necessary.

Tama tilted her little head in bemusement, oblivious to the concealed innuendos. Last but not least, Meiya was seriously contemplating her next steps with her arms crossed.

"…How… HOW IS THIS LEGAL!?" The one who broke our long quietness was an abnormally upset Class rep. She showed her concern regarding my taste.

"So what? I shall take all the brides I fancy!" I declared my intention for the world to hear.

"Brides…? EHHHHH!? That's what we're talking about?!" Every single strand of hair on Tama's body all stood up in her shock, then she joined Mikoto in dreamland while the adults recommenced their discussion.

"Look here, the male to female ratio of our planet is dangerously low, right? So it shouldn't be that much issue if I take more than one girl." My foolproof logic was somehow thoroughly rejected by a raging Class rep.

"What!? How is that even allowed!? You can't just go around and collect girls like they're trophies! That's not how society works!" Class rep slammed the table while the others just watched in silence.

"You can object my beliefs if you want, but that won't change a thing around here. If you convince the others to stop, I sure as hell won't speak up." Downing a piece of bread as I made my point, Class rep's anger only raised higher.

"Arrraa! I can't believe this! Do none of you see anything wrong here?!"

"Calm yourself, Sakaki. The way I observe this subject, there is no basis for your displeasure. Takeru may do as he sees fit; in the meantime, you are allowed to roam around in an attempt to break apart those that wishes to adore him." Meiya backed up my logic, with logic!

"I agree! If we all love Takeru-chan and he loves us back, then there's no problem with it!" Sumika also joined in the jabber using her own opinion.

"Takeru-san loves everyone." The line from Kasumi surely held many meaning… I'll decrypt it later.

"What's wrong… jealous?" That implication from Ayamine just poked Class rep the wrong way.

"T-t-that's absurd! T-there's no-no way I would l-l-like this idiot!" It was actually physical impossible for Class rep to make her feelings anymore obvious.

"That was unsettling, for a moment I thought Sakaki was earnestly not interested in Takeru." Meiya then nodded like a wise old woman in her seventies when her legs couldn't carry her anymore… that was oddly specific of me.

"I was worried too… getting lots of 'tsuns' without the 'deres'." Said Ayamine as she sarcastically patted my back.

"Aaaraa! I'm not saying anything like that! I keep telling you that I don't l-like—"

"I look forward to working with you, Chizuru-san." Like a real professional, Kasumi shook Class rep's hands during her rant that got ignored since the beginning.

"That's right! Please take good care of Takeru-chan from now on!"

"Like I keep telling you all! I-I don't love this idiot!" Class rep disproved our claims in words only, because her behaviour definitively said otherwise.

"So you like him a little then?"

"N-No!" Class rep's stutter was magnified under Ayamine's bombardment of questions that soon followed.

"Are you interested in Takeru?"

"No!"

"How about admitting your feelings then?"

"There's no way I'll do that!" The verbal battle was clearly in favour of Ayamine. I called Tama and Mikoto back to earth for them to witness the finale as well.

"Then you do have feelings for him."

"T-t-that's not true! I-I don't like him like that…!"

Surprisingly, no one cut in while Class rep and Ayamine were fighting it out with words. We all sat around the table and watched their argument with glee, or maybe it was only me who enjoyed it.

"So you do like him."

"AGGGARA! I just told you that I-I don't having those kind of feelings!"

"Alright, both of you, stop. I had enough, you two can bitch it out later; after training, that is." Finally cutting the debate between the two girls short, I was getting bored of listening to Class rep denying her emotions to such an extent. Kinda hurt me on the inside, not going to lie.

"If you say so… I was close to forcing out an answer too." From Ayamine's phrase, it was clear how much a disadvantage Class rep was playing by. Her face flustered crimson red from ear to ear and her heart was pounding away like no tomorrow.

"Tama, Mikoto. You both heard everything, right?" Two speechless nods from two equally embarrassed girls were perceived.

"Takeru-san really wants to have everyone…! That's so like him!" Tama was mostly not too upset about this whole business.

"Ahaa… guess it's fine if it's Takeru. He has always been like this, after all." Mikoto also found no fault in my personality.

"WWWHAAT!? You two don't find anything wrong with this whole thing at alllll?!" There got to be a way for Class rep to calm the fuck down.

"Well, I'm not all that great thinking about this complicated stuff and all. So if everyone else doesn't mind it, I won't!"

"Yeah… it's a bit embarrassing thinking about this kind of things… but if Takeru-san and the others don't have a problem, shouldn't everything work out?" These two girls were so trustworthy from time to time.

"How can you two just accept all this so easily!? I can't even believe this…"

"Look here, I know you're upset that I'm just too awesome for a single girl. That's okay though, I'm not forcing you into doing anything, at all. If you want to consult me, let's do that another time, okay?" Class rep's frustration was understandable.

Even if my super manliness wasn't enough to sway any girl already, some of the casualty stuff must had infected most of my female companions. On the list of girls who I'll never forget, Chizuru's name cannot be erased.

"This… is so unbelievable! I-I I DON'T EVEN CARE ANYMORE!" With those angry and embarrassed words, Class rep stormed off with her face painted red.

"Just don't forget the training, okay!?" I shouted after her when her shadow was no longer visible.

 **Hallway**

"Oh? Takeru!" My name was pronounced by an accented speaker from behind.

"Aeey, Meiya!" I answered her call with a head-pat form distance. She quivered in annoyance but accepted my caring touch in due time.

"Ta-Takeru! Stooup! I am no child!" Her interrupted sentence was eventually spat out.

"Hahahha! So what you want?" I drove away the subject at the drop of a hat.

"Mou, the likes of you… anyway, I wish to discuss the affair with that Honour Guard member I recently witness you accompanying." Said Meiya in a calm manner.

"Huh, you mean Takamura? What about her?"

"If it is allowed within regulation, may I have her full name?" Respectful Meiya asked me sincerely.

"Imperial Royal Guard First Lieutenant Takamura Yui." I surprised myself when I recalled her full title.

"What is her purpose here?"

"Err, just checking stuff, I think. She's with the Ministry of Defence, they shipped us some big guns, Takamura tagged along." Telling Meiya this much shouldn't be of any nuisance.

"I see. Mind another question?"

"Lay it on me." She confusedly stared at me then just dropped her puzzlement entirely.

"Is there a reason for your hostility towards Takamura?" It was my turn to be disoriented by her statement this time.

"Whaaat're you talking about? When did you even see her?"

"Four days ago when you walked with her and another Captain, also three days ago when we had our short break after the first simulation." Damn Meiya and her super observation skills.

"Alright, you got me. I was unfriendly towards Takamura, so what?"

"I am asking if there's a reason you must treat my servant in thi—" Meiya seemed to realized her own words too late.

"Woow, arrogant, are we?" She avoided my egotistical smirk born from her slipup.

"Ahem! There is nothing wrong with my words, Takeru. While I prefer not to see myself as one, I am a member of the Imperial family. That much was make clear by Her Highness."

"And thus, if this Takamura happens to belong to the Imperial Royal Guard, then she is a servant of mine. Even if it is in name only, she still serves me." Meiya finished her carefully thought our explanation with a touch of grace and pride.

Her speech was pleasant music to my ears. If Meiya accepted her origin, even a little, that would mean she had no intention of abandoning her own name. This dedication to her family could prove to be the edge I will need in the future.

"Hehehe, nicely said, Meiya. Indeed, I was treating her with hostility due to our current positions."

"Takamura holds information I require for an upcoming operation that no doubt will be of benefit to my project. So I am setting up mental influences over her to gain the upper hand and manipulate this girl when the time comes."

Meiya glared at me with a hidden fury for my big reveal. I only widened my grin, as I knew there was nothing she could do to change or prevent my trap for Takamura.

"…Do you have no sense of morals, Takeru?"

"Depends of the situation. If they get in my way; they're discarded." It was never in me to let something foolish like a sense of righteousness to dictate the outcome of my tomorrow.

"…That is… tragic, Takeru. To live without ethic is the same as a life of void. How can you be truly happy when you have nothing you believe in?"

"Don't tell me what to do! I don't need such pity! Not from you!" I snarled out at Meiya for her unneeded opinion. She instinctively took a step back, the sudden shock quickly turned into worry.

"Takeru, enough! There's no need to become so aggravated!"

"Arugga! You…! You… you're right, sorry about that." I pushed back my hair and calmed down. Losing my cool over such small matter was extremely unfitting for a future world saviour, it was more suited for immature time-travelling amateur.

"…You just do not know me, Meiya. You have no clue what I had to do in my fight."

"Then I'm afraid others are not mistaken when they refer to you as a phantom. The abyss is an endless vacuity, and those who enter it do not return." Now Meiya was just straight up insulting me.

"Logically speaking, of course. However, I shall bring my light into that nothingness; I shall define my own way of living, it is not required of you to guide me." With as much genuineness as I could endure, I ensured Meiya of my vastly different view.

"…I see, you are a free man, Takeru. If that is how you see our world, do not let my notion sway you."

"Never planned on doing that."

"In that case, please accept my apology." She lowered her head for a bow.

"Unnecessary. We're different people, after all." I relaxed my posture and smiled back at her.

"I am glad for your understanding."

"Haaa, you sure are an interesting person, Meiya. No one dared to openly challenge my ideas in ages."

"Is that so? I find it to be quite intriguing, still I cannot allow myself onto such a path." Meiya ran her fingers through her hair too when she spoke.

"Obviously, no. You're too noble of a person to ever ignore your means." On the other hand, it was victory at all cost for me.

"Some can see it as a weakness of mine, to be unable to adapt to the shifting reality."

"I see it as a valuable trait; a voice of reason in this chaotic age." Meiya's opinion was paramount to our group in many situations during my past.

"Hopefully so. Or this sense of duty may spell our doom." She laughed jokingly after saying that.

"Or, or maybe it could save us in a moment of dilemma."

"Huhuhu, I wish for that to be the truth." I shared her moment of joy with her.

"Alriiight! That's enough philosophy for one day, I'll consider your side of things next time. Maybe it will yield a positive result, who knows?"

"Then I shall attempt to see through your lenses as well. At the end of the day, it is for the same goal we travel this path."

"Speaking of the path we travel. Congratulations on your recent promotion." I swiftly switched the subject to another matter entirely.

"What nonsense are you… do you know, Takeru!?" Meiya was taken aback by my expansive knowledge,

"Sure do, Meiya…-sama." It was worth the death glare she shot me to make that joke.

"Argga… I cannot believe such events. Just… what is Her Highness thinking?"

"Dunno, Yuuhi-sama probably misses you greatly though." I offered my honest opinion.

"Aneue doubtlessly faced many adversaries for the sake of granting me this title. Yet I have no method of showing her my appreciation without others using it to harm her!" Meiya got upset from thinking too much.

"Hey, hey. Look at it this way, now that you're legitimately family; you can assist her formally instead of just praying for her wellbeing."

"…Indeed, Takeru. I failed it see this circumstances until such light. Now I will finally be able to reunite with Aneue… no longer must our meeting be forbidden by the law." Her newfound outspokenness was no doubt part of her bliss.

"And that makes me one of them red suits. I demand my Takemikazuchi to have zebra stripes painted on!" A pure laughter reached my ears.

"Huhuhu, I may be capable of allotting your wish in the near future."

"Now that I think about it, wouldn't you need to change your name soon? You're part of the Koubuin House now." I brought up a point that bothered my mind for quite a while.

"…That would be necessary, will it not?"

"So Koubuin Meiya… huh? Err, that's like… awkward to say."

 **Author's note**

First of all, Merry Christmas, everyone! Oh, what? It's not Christmas yet for you because of time-zone? Literally nothing I can do. But other than that, Merry Christmas, everyone!

This is indeed the season of giving, however you all ain't getting shit from me. Other than my gratitude for always supporting this story, that is. Seriously though, thank you to everyone who reviewed, favourite, followed, or simply read this story. Thank you very much for coming and taking a look at my constant ramble.

As for my holiday, I am currently putting together a Fa-22 F-22 (Fucking fine! Happy now!? Also I can't even strikethrough on the site, had to underline.) Raptor model kit by Kotobukiya. I'll tell you next time how I completely destroyed this thing because what is instruction Manuel? It's pretty fun, complicated as hell but fun. I recommend.

And that's pretty much it, thanks for coming and till next time.

BETA done by Chad001. You know, my thesaurus is pretty bad these days, not only is it terrible, it is terrible.


	23. Setting down the rules

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 15, 2001**

 **Simulation Chamber**

"Just a recap before we start here. First, your wingman, or maybe wingwoman would work better…? But I have to count myself as well…"

"Can you please just get a move on?" Carryover salt pricked me in the form of Class rep's criticism.

Our group came together after breakfast for today's simulation training. Class rep was still totally upset and not willing to listen to any explanations, not like I planned to tell her anything but this attitude was quite amusing.

"What's your hurry? Anyway, your wingman is your most important buddy on the field. Your safety is number one priority and your wingman is number two, don't be slacking off just because you're safe, be sure to check up on your partner at all times."

"That doesn't mean you shouldn't worry about the others on the team though. Keep an eye out for the rest, but just know that keeping your Element active is the most important objective outside the actual mission, got that?"

"Yes, sir." Nice and easy lessons, just how I liked them.

"For today's training, we'll be practicing against Laser-class mixed in with frequent BETA strains. Take a look at your screen." The details of our drill were given out from my pod.

"As for anti-Laser strategies, does anyone still remember them?" I decided to involve the team in plan-making as well.

"The Laser-class have a delay between the acquisition of their target and the actual firing. During that time they cannot move in any direction, so I believe it will be most effective to eliminate any stationary Laser-class." I mentally rewarded Meiya with a sticker.

"Good, good. What else do you all remember?"

"The Laser-class never shoot their friendlies, right? So we can use the other BETA around us as cover and shoot them back." The next one to reminisce her training was Mikoto, she also understood the core concept of combat against the Laser-class.

"That's pretty much it, well done, everyone. The exercise should teach you the rest."

—

The simulation was set in a jungle environment with a Regiment of BETA forces, the selection of hostiles was from a regular composition of BETA during a large-scale attack. Placing eight Eishis against a thousand to two thousands of those bugs was a huge disadvantage; for the BETA, that is.

—

"And… clean house! Hahaha… that was marvellous, girls. " It wasn't an understatement to say we destroyed the virtual enemies so bad that their virtual mothers wouldn't recognize them, if that was how things worked.

The monitor in front of us slowly faded to black before I instructed for everyone to disembark their pods. We gathered on the catwalk outside afterwards to discuss the recent successful simulation.

"Such a magnificent score, huhu. Our capability as a team is truly impressive indeed." A rare case of boasting came from Meiya.

"That was amazing, everyone! We cleared the simulation in record time!"

"Everybody, good job." Sumika and Kasumi congratulated the team.

"I'm so glad yesterday's training wasn't wasted…!"

"Two days ago… it was two days ago." Ayamine reminded Mikoto of the actual dates.

"Ahha… it was sooo tiring! But totally worth it too! I was almost twice as good compared to our first simulation yesterday!"

"Ahehe… we did really well, Yoroi-san!"

"Right, right, Miki-san!" The two flat chests were also enjoying their moment of victory.

"What're we doing next, squad leader? It's still a bit while until lunch, only ten and three quarters right now." Class rep inquired for our next step.

"Let's dismiss for the time being, I have other things to attend or take care of. We'll start again at 1:30 in the afternoon." Seeing no reason to hang out in the empty room, I called for an early discharge.

"What're you going to do, Takeru-chan?"

"Nothing you need to know. Although you did just remind me— Kasumi, come get my paperwork later." I had no clue how Sumika's question triggered my memories, but since I remembered, it was all dandy.

"Okay."

"Ehhh?! You're making Kasumi-chan do your homework?" Calling that homework was shockingly fitting.

"It's okay, Sumika-san. I like helping Takeru-san." It's not child labour if they like it… wait, that came out wrong…

"Really? Okay then. Are we dismissed then? Can we go now?" It was a little strange for Sumika to be this eager at leaving, but I paid it no mind since her behaviour was always the same.

"Yep, just don't forget to come back later, Archangel Squadron dismissed."

 **PX**

Weird, normally by now the girls would have collected here to eat lunch. In their stead, I was greeted by the members of the Valkyries.

"What's up with those candies and flowers? You gonna visit the hospital?" Haruko, Kazama, Munakata, both Suzumiyas and Hayase sat around the table picking flowers and organizing boxes of chocolates.

"Yes we are, Capt. Shirogane. This is for 2nd Lt. Takahara and Asakura, they'll be released from the hospitals soon." The elder Suzumiya kindly informed me. On the other hand, I didn't expect my guess to be right on the money.

"Those two are coming back, huh? That's good news, your 9th Squadron will be back on par."

"That's right, Shirogane! Then we'll officially challenge your team to a battle!" The leer was shot my way by none other than Hayase, I replied in kind with mockery.

"Then you can officially get your asses kicked."

"Huh!? What did you just say!?" Same old, same old.

"Don't mind her, Capt. Shirogane. Hayase only says things like that because nobody else can relieve her sexual frustration excluding you." An instant change of mood in the PX could be observed.

"MU-NA-KA-TA! I dare you to say that again!"

"Ahehehe, Hayase, please. You have to find a better hobby other than trying to play around with me. Why don't you trying playing with yourself? What do the girls call it? Like, flicking the bean or something?"

"Prrffff! Oh, Hayase, get rekted!" Munakata rolled on the ground from laughter right then and there. No, no, she literally fell down from her seat and was on the floor cracking up.

"AHHHAA! I'm gonna kill your dumbass, SHIROGANE! You mark my words, boy!" Hayase jumped out of her chair and almost charged me head on, her face shaded in a bright red.

"Making such a threat while blushing crimson doesn't help your cause. But again, everyone has their own method of releasing pent up stress. Don't worry, Hayase, your way is quite common; although more in men than women, but I'm sure you can count as a bit of both."

"Aheheee… HAhaha! Oh… my god!" Despite her best attempt, Haruko just died, completely died right there.

"Auraa! You're so, SO LUCKY that you're just a little bit higher in rank than I am!"

"Hahaha! Shirogane! Where do I tip you for that?" With childlike enthusiasm, Munakata hopped off the floor and patted my shoulders with extreme delight.

"Right here, yo!" I reached out my open palm which she clapped with utmost excitement. That brought a few more laughs from the Suzumiyas and Kazama, while Haruko didn't even bother to stop her chuckling.

"That was good fun, you okay, Hayase? Know that I have no ill-will against you." Giggling in joy, I patted Hayase's head to her further upset.

"Ummuu… damn you… Shiiroogaanneee…! Remember this!" Accepting her total defeat with a heavy dose of spice, Hayase wisely decided continuing the verbal fight would be disadvantageous. So she sat back down in shame and proceeded to work on the flowers.

"Hihihi… anyway. When exactly are those two getting discharged?"

"In about three or four days, I believe." Kazama answered me with her usual peace.

"That's great, it'll make our teams even… didn't I say that already?" She quietly giggled without stopping her hands.

"Capt. Shirogane, what're you doing then? If you don't mind me asking."

"Looking for my team, you girls seem them around?"

"Oh, yeah. I saw 1st Lt… emmm… was it Kanami…?" Akane tried guiding me only to fail as she forgot Sumika's name.

"It's Kagami. Have you seen her?"

"Right, Kagami— I mean 1st Lt. Kagami took her lunch along with Chiz— 2nd Lt. Sakaki, Tamase, Yoroi, Ayamine and 1st Lt. Kasumi somewhere else." That list was missing a name.

"Wait, what about Meiya then?"

"Emmm… 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi…" It appeared that Akane had no memory of seeing her.

"2nd Lt. Mitsurugi wasn't with them." And my guess was confirmed by Haruko.

"That so, no matter. Guess I'm free for the day, you girls want some help with the flowers or the candies?" My assistance was warmly welcomed by most of the girls present.

"Having you tending to these will probably just break these poor gifts though." A pitiful shot at me by Hayase.

"At least I won't accidently shove them up where the sun doesn't shine. Looking at you, these are about the right size. You should watch out with stuff like that, they don't come out easy." A flustered Hayase and entertained Munakata later, we finished the packaging together with the power of friendship like a good team should.

 **Hallways**

'If those girls really are putting effort into whatever they plot, then I have no reason to interfere.' To be honest, it wasn't hard to predict what my team was up to considering the date. But if they wanted privacy, they'll get privacy.

I found myself often wandering the halls when my hands were free from any labour. Kasumi got me covered on my paperwork, and as a Captain there wasn't any reason for me to worry.

"Huh? Ah, Capt. Shirogane, good day."

It was Takamura who I ran into, nothing about her had changed since I last saw her; she wore the same Honour Guard uniform as Tsukuyomi, just in yellow instead of red. I honestly don't know why they use colour to represent the ranks, just Japanese stuff, I guess.

"Sup, Takamura… Lieutenant, good afternoon to you as well." Calling her by the name alone was so much easier compared to adding a status, probably just my laziness speaking, though.

"You are not one to take greetings respectfully, are you?"

"Depending on the situation, it's too much of a pain to speak nicely with everyone. Nobody really cares about this stuff, anyway." Takamura gave me a wordless sigh like so many others before letting out a soft snicker.

"Talking with you sure is very tiring, Capt. Shirogane."

"That was just mean. You want some respect? Sure." I swiftly changed my grimace to a much more mature one.

"On a more serious note, I would like to thank you for your aid during the last training." With sincerity this time around, I saluted Takamura as the leader of my team. She returned my show of esteem with a firm hand signal as well.

"I am glad to be of assistance, however it is the performance of yourself and your squad members who deserve such praise. I merely helped with assignment of orders and combat statists."

"For two days straight, First Lieutenant. That's not a feat to swipe under the rug by any means." It wasn't like I actually disliked Takamura, so flattering her undeniable achievement wasn't hard.

"It's nothing, as a person of military myself; it's not unusual for operation commands to last that long. Your team were the ones who endured through nearly thirty hours of combat simulation."

"Hehe, a polite one, aren't you? Nevertheless, you did help us out, Takamura. Maybe I'll give you a reward." My smug smile unsettled Takamura as to the true meaning behind my words.

"…Reward? What do you have in mind?"

"Come on now, walk with me, First Lieutenant."

 **Hanger**

"…So my guess is right, after all." For the first time since her arrival, Takamura's sight was finally graced by the magnificence that was my YF-23 Arondight. The two of us stood on the bridge outside my TSF's cockpit, the closest a person can be without actually entering the frame.

"Quite a magnificent machine, won't you agree?"

"Indeed, for the Type-94 Second to travel this world and end up here is most… unexpected." I detected a hint of nostalgia in those violet eyes.

To Takamura, the TSF was still the Shiranui Second even after many modifications by the Americans. She must had her share of fond memories together with this unit, no doubt together with her test pilot.

"Why don't we discuss how this machine ended up in my hands, huh? Bet you're interested in that." She only watched me silently without a word.

"During the 12/5 incident, I happened to pick this up when fighting some CIA dudes. After investigating a bunch of stuff and whatnot, we learned about the XFJ Program, and how this used to be the Shiranui Second Phase 3 01b." Her expression was that of a concealed disbelief.

"The reason this thing got revised so much was for it to beat the Phase 3 01a. I'm sure you know what happened to that unit." Takamura continued to keep her mouth sealed.

"Then about a week ago the DIA called us, offering a contract of sorts. They want the twins and 01a in exchange for the YF-23's license and import restrictions. Not a bad deal coming from the US of A, so we agreed easily." This time she was clearly frustrated by my revelation.

"…Are you telling me what I think you're telling me, Captain?" Takamura's glare was starting to fill up with loathing.

"Cryska Barchenowa, Inia Sestina, and Yuuya Bridges. Shiranui Second Phase 3 and Su-47E Berkut. Pretty sure you know those names better than I do." The pressure she applied on her lip was rapidly turning it purple without her realization.

"Does the UN… really want to work as US hounds?"

"That is a clear and absolute no, Takamura. Let me finish." Caught off guard, The XFJ leader was once again wordless.

"The UN, namely Alternative IV is captivated by the Phase 3 and the Scarlet Twins. We wish to further understand their working and how to best incorporate them as part of humanity."

"So just like what the DIA wants." My use of general and empty words was not effective on her as predicted.

"That is up for you to decide, however I'll show you this much—" I handed her a PDA as I cut off my sentence.

"Take a look at this." Takamura ambiguously took the tablet I offered her and studied it thoroughly.

It was after she carefully read every line on screen when she stared back at me in shock.

"This team…! Why gather such exclusive group of soldiers?!" It was my Squadron's tally that I presented Takamura.

"Highly intriguing, right? From the Prime Minister's daughter to Alternative III espers, we got them all. Also the heir of Mitsurugi family, our empire's nightfall, so to speak." It became impossible for Takamura to hide her total astonishment, she tried and failed multiple times to speak without success.

"How… how?!"

"Let's say we have a certain way of recruiting people, Takamura. Nevermind that, you're looking at the Eishis who will be sent after the trio of escapees." The topic was returned to where it started.

"What is it… that you seek, Capt. Shirogane?" From the way Takamura stated her question, it appeared that I have pushed her to the edge.

"Alright, that's enough mind games with you. Normally I would have just cracked your pretty head mentally and gotten what I want. However, this one time I'll try a different technique with you." Takamura slowly closed her eyes as she realized how I completely outplayed her without actually playing anything.

"I had a talk with Meiya earlier and that changed my plan, you should thank her for your sanity."

"Mitsurugi-sama…?" So that was how Takamura addressed her, huh. I learned something that day.

"Doesn't matter, I'm gonna tell you exactly what I want from you, okay?" After minutes of hesitation, Takamura lightly nodded.

"I want you to tell me where Bridges and the twins are going, that's all."

"What do you plan on once you have such intel?" It was a natural question to ask.

"Like I said before, we want to help them, honestly. You see how I got an esper on my team as well, there's no way I'll ever harm someone close to Kasumi." My earnest truth seemed to have an effect on Takamura, she rested her chin in her palm and went deep in thought.

"Then what will you interchange with me for that information?" A while after, Takamura demanded her payment.

"How about the revival of your Program, then? Alternative IV will take over the XFJ; so you people can keeping making TSF while we write you blank-checks."

There was even more dead-silence following that. Takamura was obviously abstracted within her thoughts, considering and weighing both options and their payoff.

It was an exchange between herself as a solider of the Royal Guards and herself as a person. She will sacrifice one or the other, that alone wasn't a choice.

"Please… give me some time to carefully evaluate your offer." When she couldn't deliver a single answer, Takamura instead bowed to me and asked for more time.

"Very well, you have until your departure. Examine wisely, Takamura. For only one road leads to your future." Dropping my final words in a condescending fashion, I headed out of the hanger with Takamura far behind.

 **Simulation Chamber**

"Welcome back, girls. Ready for the afternoon lesson?"

"Yes, sir." If they said that with any less integrity, I would be getting called out for not disciplining my team. Meiya was the first to reach the hanger, everyone else came about a minute later.

"Before we start today, what were you girls doing for lunch?" The only one whose reaction diverged from the rest was Meiya, since she wasn't invited to whatever the crew planned behind my back.

"Eating at a new place." How Kasumi squeeze that lie out through her teeth, I didn't know; then again, she only has only expression… so.

"Ahha… r-right! That's what we were doing!"

"True, true… don't doubt." Two comments from Ayamine and Tama were the only cracks at backing up Kasumi.

If Meiya was somehow upset, she sure as hell didn't let it show. I soon lost interest in their side act and directed the topic back on track.

"For today's training, we'll do something a little different. As Eishis, we must be prepared for all situations at all times. So to amplify that ability to react suitably under any circumstances, we'll be having a simulation with both anti-BETA and anti-TSF factors taken into consideration."

"So are we like, fighting both sides at the same time?" Asked Mikoto after she raised her hand like a cute schoolgirl.

"Yep, good times, right?"

"Huhuhu, this could be very interesting, admittedly." Meiya also inserted her share of thought.

"Any questions then?" All I got was confident eyes gawking back at me.

"Good, Archangels, embark your units."

"Yes, sir."

—

"And here're the teams, red team is Vanguard and Rear Interceptor; me, Meiya, Ayamine and Class rep. Blue team is sweepers and Clear Guards; Sumika, Kasumi, Tama and Mikoto. Colour based teams are the easiest to identify so that's that. Questions, anyone?"

After loading into our JIVES and selecting our gears, the team now waited for the end of my elucidation.

"Emm… you didn't say we'll be fighting each other." The little bit of agitation didn't sit too well with me from Class rep.

"From previous training, I have determined the team's capability is far from the norm, therefore fighting against simulated enemies won't improve your skills that much. As you all should know, our world is based on survival of the fittest. So if you don't step up your game here, you'll just lag behind in battle." The girls took some time off from complaining and seriously reflected my statements.

"Takeru is right, this is nothing but a simulation. To improve our aptness for combat here without the risk of actual injuries should be viewed as a great privilege."

"Me too! I agree with Meiya-san!"

"Same."

"I agree as well."

"Looks like everyone else likes it! Then Miki won't have a problem either!"

"If fighting each other here can improve our skills, then it's a good thing, right?"

"Alright, alright. I wasn't disagreeing in the first place."

—

"Timer, Kasumi."

"T-minus 90 seconds until activation." Running through my system check one last time before combat, I got Kasumi to read the countdown as I prepared my final speech.

The combat arena was being loaded in the background when I last checked the status of the team. They were nervous, sure. But more importantly, they were excited. Very, very excited for another mock battle within the added flavour of the BETA.

"Alright, teams. Let's get this show on the road. Your objective, is the eradication of all hostile forces; be it BETA or TSF. Your mission time is 30 minutes on the clock and the estimated BETA unit size is two Battalions from a regular large-scale attack."

"Refreshment of ammunition and weaponry will arrive via airdrop every 10 minutes so you probably should to secure those if you want a real chance at winning. There won't a CP for either team so your data source will be from your data link alone, and your teammates, of course."

"That's pretty much it, good luck and if you're on the other team, screw you." The girls chuckled a bit before we all kicked into action once the start timer hit zero.

 **Takamura Yui**

This afternoon, Yui visited the Command Post again in hope of catching the Archangel Squadron in training. After some light talk with the other Command Post operatives she sat down and focused on the simulated mock battle of the A-01's 9th Squadron.

The comms were already filled with shouts of orders and yells for support, Yui put on a set of headphones and observed carefully the game battle happening before her.

"—Arga…! Archangel 5, spotted two hostiles to 4 O'clock; distance, two hundred! Moving to engage!"

"—Archangel 7, copy. Covering."

"—T-this is Archangel 4, just downed a target! Requesting backup!"

"—Archangel 1 copy. Don't break formation, let me get the BETA off you."

It was quite a pointless training, to be honest. Fighting against programed, predictable foes in a controlled environment was nothing but a game. Yui knew firsthand how unforeseeable the BETA really were; they strike fast and hard, destroying everything in their path and left no survivors to report their advance.

"—Archangel 6 is down! Kasumi-chan, cover our left frank!"

"—Copy, Archangel 3 will engage hostile units."

"—This is Archangel 8, ayaa, I have multiple targets in sight! Firing!"

"Archangel 3, confirmed one E.K.I.A. Requesting suppressive fire."

Nonetheless, this little game prepared by Shirogane was of some entertainment value, she must admit. Both teams fought against the aliens as well as each other, she never saw this type of training put into action before today.

If Yui was two months younger, she would have simply dismissed such an activity as nothing but a waste of time and resources. Yet, after her involuntary participation in the Yukon Base incident, she realized exactly how uncooperative some people could be.

"How's the front role seat, 1st Lt. Takamura?" A sudden voice belonging to the one and only professor on base made itself heard to Yui.

"Professor Kouzuki, good afternoon." While saluting an officer of another army wasn't mandatory, Yui really couldn't afford to be on Yokohama Vice-Commander's bad side.

"To you too, Lieutenant. How's the impression of Alternative IV? Liking it so far?" Professor Kouzuki lightly patted Takamura's shoulder to her slight annoyance and took a seat beside her.

"Your project is… powerful, ma'am. Very, powerful." It was a nice way of stating Alternative IV's dictation over the UN.

"Ahaha… why thank you, 1st Lt. Takamura. It pleases my heart when others compliment me like this." The only wise course of action for Yui was to speak no more in front of the teasing genius scientist.

"Huhuhu, it appears so that you're quite conflicted on a matter of things." Kouzuki said after Yui didn't reply to her earlier comment.

"If that is what you see in me, ma'am." Kouzuki grinned again. She leaned in much closer to Yui's ear than she would be comfortable with and whispered with a hint of kindness.

"Capt. Shirogane, right? He's causing you some distress."

"Ahh… yes, I'm quite bothered by what the Captain offered me." Yui thought about simply lying to the Professor, yet the sudden caring aura she projected made her confess to the truth.

"A man of great interest, that Shirogane. He stuck you in between a rock and a hard place, correct?"

"That is true, ma'am." Kouzuki sat back down slowly and watched her with a friendly gaze.

"Guess he doesn't give off the best impression, huh? The boy is just that type of a person. He can't afford another loss, ever again."

Staring tranquilly at the picture of Shirogane from his cockpit camera, Kouzuki was letting a mixture of anxiety and affection. And Yui wasn't sure which was her intention.

"…Professor Kouzuki?" She called out to the Vice-Commander shorty after.

"He is a good guy, 1st Lt. Takamura. He has his own ways of doing things, they might not be the most sensible, but definitely the most practical. He could be your ally, as long as you don't see him as an enemy."

"Professor, do you know the subject we discussed earlier?" Yui needed a way to solve the puzzle spoken by Kouzuki.

"No, however I can guess well enough." With a rapid movement of her arm, Kouzuki again patted her shoulder; this time applying more menace than fake friendliness.

"What do you inten—"

Yui lost her words when the Professor leaned in close once more, a hidden grin of evil pasted over her beautiful front.

"Don't worry, whether he succeeds or not; I'll still get what I want, I always get what I want."

"Profess—" Yui's resist was futile from the second she tried to speak back.

"Your time is almost up, Takamura. Take his deal, it is much better than mine." And then the Professor just left peacefully, leaving Yui alone while a fearful sensation slowly crept through the cracks in her mask.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"That was fun, eh?" Seven rounds and multiple player changes later, we ended the training session after five hours of continuous combat.

"I did not foresee simulated training to be this entertaining, today was truly a day well-spent." Starting with Meiya, the rest of my team all gathered outside the pods a short while later.

"That was fun! Who had the highest score out of us?"

"Takeru-san won six rounds, confirmed thirteen kills and assisted four." Of course it was Kasumi who remembered my achievements.

"Wow! That's amazing, Takeru! I only got four kills!"

"I got six… but died eight times…"

"Ahehe, that's what Takeru-san calls a negative K/D, isn't, Ayamine-san?"

"Still, even if we tune out the scores. The time for each mission was so much shorter than other training with the same settings."

My genius plan of making a game out of the training class yielded great results as the crew had the highest kill per second record than ever before.

"That was some good games, girls! We'll continue to practicing like this as long as we don't have operations to prepare for. You're all dismissed for today, let's go grab some food."

 **PX**

"Kashiwagi! Come here for a minute."

"Huh? What do you need, Capt. Shirogane?" Haruko ran over after dropping off her tray with the rest of the Valkyries.

"You see Ayamine over there, right?" my finger directed Haruko as she also saw Ayamine sitting quietly by our table.

"Yeah, what about her?"

"Here, this is a piece of Yakisoba bread. I want you to sink it right into her mouth, think you can do that?" It was this time when Haruko shot me this weird look, mix of confusion and an added touch of discontent.

"Enm, I can probably do that. Are you sure it's fine with her?"

"Yeah, she's good. Alright, shoot it when I give you the sign." Turning back to the crowd, I called Sumika mentally for her to ready up Ayamine.

"Looks good, you think you got this?"

"Errr… okay, I'll try."

With Ayamine's open mouth as the target, Haruko aimed her bread 'ball' carefully and packed it with pin-point precision right in Ayamine from five metres out.

"Heyyy! Three-Pointer! Someone pass me an air horn!"

"Beeeeeerrrrr."

"…Thank you… for the sound effect, Kasumi…"

"You're welcome." Then she just sat back down like nothing ever happened.

"…What…? What… what did she…?" Haruka shifted her gaze between us in total bewilderment.

"No, don't even worry about this. Good shot, by the way, you played basketball before?" Derailing the previous subject at light speed, I asked Haruko for an answer I knew years before.

"Yeah, when I was young. Before being recruited into the army, I used to play basketball with my brothers." Recalling back to a nostalgic time, Haruko let out a soft moan thinking about her family.

"Those days were good times, how're your brothers now?"

"They're still at home, the older one will be conscripted in another three years… or maybe it's two…? I-I can't remember…" It didn't take a genius to noticing her melancholy, I patted her back as a small share of comfort.

"It's okay, you're still fighting to protect them, and I know that." Haruko raised her gaze and shockingly placed it on me.

"I… I'll be going back now, Capt. Shirogane."

"Have a good dinner, Haruko. See you tomorrow." I left for my group as Haruko's slight blush form being addressed by her forename was starting to take shape.

—

"What're you gonna do now, Takeru-chan?"

"Emm, not too sure. How about you, Sumika?" I fired the question back.

"Eh? Err, I-I'm gonna… go to sleep early with Kasumi-chan!"

"Yes, we're going to bed." It felt like an insult to my intelligence if I believed such a lie; still, I was generous enough to let them off the hook this one time.

"Welp, Meiya, want to play Shogi?"

"I see no reason to refuse you, Takeru. I shall bring us the board." With that, Meiya made a path to her room.

"T-then we'll be going, Takeru-san! Goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Takeru. I'll work on that emblem for us soon." Class rep and Tama left behind a nervous send-off and a friendly reminder respectively.

"See you then, Takeru-chan!"

"See you."

"Going now… till tomorrow, Squad leader."

"Bye, Takeru!"

I casually waved them off as every member of my squad vacated the PX.

"Ahh, they left." Without Meiya, of course. She returned with our game in hand.

"What, you lonely, Meiya?"

"Well, the team all exited the PX together without me. I cannot think of a motive for their action." Maybe Meiya was just dense when it came to this sort of activities.

"You really don't know why?"

"I do not, no."

"Naaaah, you'll figure it out tomorrow. Don't worry about it for now." Meiya tilted her head with a baffled fashion as I setup the chess.

"Have you informed them about my change of identity?" She inquired me after I unfolded the broad.

"Not yet, they don't need to know yet."

"Indeed, I do not wish to cause them further nervousness than need be." Meiya spun the king piece in her hand as she spoke about her care for her team members.

"Right. Let's play first, I even let you have the first move."

"Huhu, you will come to regret such a decision."

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **Shirogane's room**

"That was a terrible lie, Sumika-san."

"Wuuuu… it's not my fault! Lying is hard!"

"Please keep quiet, others may hear us." Giving her companion a quick scold before stealthily closing the door and turning on the lights, Kasumi surveyed the room she almost visited every day.

"Let's look for clues, then! Takeru-chan must have something hidden here!"

"Okay." The two girls rushed to work under the cover of the night, even if they happened to be in a well-lit room.

—

"Mou! Takeru-chan has nothing hidden here! This is so boring!"

"Where didn't we look?" Sudden, a light bulb of idea was lit in Sumika's mechanical head.

"Ah, that's right! We can look through his computer!"

"Good idea, Sumika-san." Swiftly pacing over, Sumika gently pushed the power button on Takeru's desktop and impatiently waited for the display to greet her.

"Awa! A password! No! Bad password! Go away!" And it was gone.

Kasumi said nothing about her friend's method of computer hacking as Sumika dug through the database in joy.

—

"Arra! There's still nothing! Takeru-chan must have some secret somewhere!" Upset with their lack of progress, Sumika doodled on the front screen using sheer brain power.

"Let's check his classified files."

"Okay!" Following Kasumi's suggestion, Sumika opened up the database of Takeru's computer without realizing that was a great offense in military law to inspect classified documents of an officer.

"I was joki— nevermind." Sumika didn't even catch Kasumi's confession, her inability to kid around could often be hampering.

"Wooo, what's this? He got a new file!"

"Looks like some kind of important information." At this moment, both girls knew exactly what must be done. Takeru's slice of private life was robbed so effortlessly by the super hacker Sumika.

"Huuuh? Ehhh? This is all military stuff! That's boring!" Sumika complained about her lover's affair with the army instead of his actual lovers.

Off on the side, Kasumi scanned the pages when Sumika browsed through them with little interest. While she was still as deadpan as ever, a couple of slides instantly demanded Kasumi's attention like no other.

"Sumika-san, wait. Let me see."

"Okay." Willingly releasing her rule over Takeru's computer, Sumika stepped a bit to the side for Kasumi to take over the mouse.

Scrolling back up a bit, a sense of urgency and anxiety assaulted Kasumi's ever-calm mind. Before her, the monitor displayed two military profile shots; both characters had slick, beautiful silver hair just like Kasumi herself. And both had clear violet irises similar to Kasumi's own pupils.

"Inia… Cryska…" Even with her past long behind her, the stoic Russian girl just couldn't escape from her previous life.

"Hum? Do you know these two, Kasumi-chan? They do look the same to you."

A clueless Sumika leaned in to better examine the pictures and texts that caught Kasumi's eyes. To Sumika, those were nothing but another mission; and if Takeru required for its completion, Sumika will stop at nothing to fulfill his order.

"Hmm… I'm not too sure about this but, doesn't HVT means 'High-Value-Target'? Do you think we'll be sent after these two?" Just the same as Sumika, Kasumi also noticed the description under their names.

"Can you find where this came from?"

"Emm… I'll check… Aha! This is sent from Kouzuki-sensei's computer!" Tracking a file back to its root was a piece of very digestible cake for Sumika.

"…Why is this happening?" A thousand thoughts constructed within Kasumi's judgment, none was more possible than the next.

"Errr, so do you know these two or not, Kasumi-chan?" Faced with a personal interrogation for her first time, Kasumi pandered and pandered without reaching a solid conclusion.

"They're… like me."

"But do you know them? I think we might meet them soon!" Her cheerful friend was totally incognizant of Kasumi's perplexity about the problem at hand.

"I… no. Yashiro Kasumi doesn't know these two." It was a painful answer Kasumi delivered, it was a decision full of sorrow made by the brightest esper of Alternative III.

"…I see, then maybe one day Kasumi-chan can be friends with them! They look like nice people too! Maybe not the tall one… ahehe, she looks kinda mean." Sumika ran her soft fingers through Kasumi's scalp, leaving a few scratches and certainly messing up her twin-tail.

"Maybe one day…"

"It's okay, Kasumi-chan. Takeru-chan and I and everyone else are all here for you! Don't worry about these hard stuff, they'll work themselves out!" Tightening her head-pat to a hug, Sumika embraced Kasumi firmly to ease the girl of her inner-pain.

"Thank you, Sumika-san. I'm sure we can all be friends. Let's get back to work now, Takeru-san may come back soon." Even if Kasumi showed no more emotion than what she exhibited on a daily basis, Sumika still perceived that little sign of relief in her tiny voice.

"Alright then! Let's keep looking—" It was Sumika whose attention got stolen this time.

"What's wrong, Sumika-san?" When Sumika laid her mind's eyes upon the next section of the report, she couldn't help but neglect Kasumi's callings until she fully understood the text's significance.

"What… is this? Prafra? Plrfora? Prakfa?"

"Prafka, it's pronounced Prafka."

"The… Prafka effect… it looks so… strong." Kasumi turned to her friend when her use of vocabulary was highly questionable.

"Please let me see as well." Taking over the mouse once more, Kasumi read the couple of paragraphs describing what absorbed Sumika's interest.

"Do you know about this, Kasumi-chan?"

"…No. I don't know about this." It was obvious to Kasumi as to why Sumika got so attracted to this abnormal phenomenon that only applied to esper Eishis.

"Do you think we can use it?" And the next sentence was when Sumika dropped an easily anticipated metaphorical bomb.

"…I don't know."

"We're both espers, right? There shouldn't be a reason we can't use this." Bypassing common sense had always been Sumika's forte.

"This looks dangerous, and we don't have the proper training to active Prafka."

"There is always time for training. I want this, this looks so strong." At this point, Sumika's mind was already deadset on making the effect hers.

"Sumika-san… but…" Having discarded her usual cheerful self after entering this topic, the eyes of the 00 unit was beaming a powerful will; a will to possess as much strength as possible, for she will require every ounce of that potency.

"I know the risks, Kasumi-chan. I can read too, you know? But with this, maybe we can be on par with Takeru-chan. Maybe we can finally stop being the ones protected by him, we can finally protect his back instead."

"Sumika-san…"

"We're still not strong enough to protect him, Takeru-chan bears all the burden for us since we can't watch ourselves. With this, everything could change!" Sumika found her resolve in an instant. Kasumi took a few steps closer, her hands connecting with Sumika's palms.

"You're right, Sumika-san. We'll need to be stronger." It turned out Sumika's perspective was shared by one other, her best friend also wished the potential to shield their lover.

"Then we'll look into this, okay?"

"Yes, the Professor should be able to help us." And in silence, the two stood for what felt like an entirely.

"Ah, that's right! Let's keep looking for clues to his present!" Banishing the dire moment away, the bunny combo continued to ransack the world saviour's room without mercy.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"Huuooaa…" I stretched my body for some instantaneous feedback in my muscles after opening the doors to my room.

It was a tiring hour matching wit against Meiya, her tactics and strategies were on par with many great military leaders. If it wasn't for my ability to time-travel and coming to a painstakingly understanding of her personality, my loss was a matter of reality.

—

I showered quickly was all ready to sleep for the day when a sequence of perfectly timed knocked were perceived from outside my door.

"Who?"

"It's me, Takeru-san." Kasumi's flat voice called out.

"Alright, get in." My door was pushed open to reveal a calm rabbit girl.

Kasumi wore her night-time one-piece, the black overall covered most of her slim body and reached down to around her ankles. It was actually a long time since I last saw her in her sleepwear with her ears at the same time, mostly it was one or the other, almost never both.

Carrying her oversized rabbit toy on her back, she somehow balanced the other creepy bunny on top of her head like a circuits… rabbit? Both furry toys were dangling loosely in her care and she would occasionally swing her body around so they wouldn't fall off.

"Here for what, Kasumi?"

"I want to sleep with you tonight, Takeru-san." Her line fazed me for a good dozen seconds.

"So like… that sleep. Or Thaaat sleep?"

"That sleep." Kasumi's total lack of emotions made my stressed vowels entirely pointless.

"That sleep it is." I decided to play it safe and climbed on my bed first.

Instead of getting in the bed with me, Kasumi carefully dropped her two bunnies on the spot I made for her. We stared at each other without communication for what felt like an eternity before I threw my arms in the air, declaring my unwillingness to take action.

"I wore your favourite panties, Takeru-san." So it was probably the other sleep she wanted.

"All your panties look the same though, they're just all black and does… not— hnggra…"

As the Causality Conductor, I proud myself with the capability to predict the future fairly accurately. Nonetheless, this one time I'll admit my defeat in the face of my Russian girl.

"Takeru-san like these the most, right?"

Kasumi utterly shocked me when she lifted her one-piece higher and higher until it no longer served to purpose of covering her nether region, some very suggestive strings of fluid were dripping down along her thighs. The reflective light overhead would often shine on her strands of juice, making them flash brightly under their source.

"Hnnngggaaa… the emperor panties… not gonna lie, this is getting me on, Kasumi."

"Please have sexual intercourse with me." It was doubtless she was asking me for the other sleep, or the lack of sleep we'll be having.

—

"Kasumi, no. We can't 4P like this."

"How abou—"

"We also can't 3P as well."

"Why?"

"Because your bunnies here don't have a hole for me to… insert."

"But usa-san and big usa-san will feel lonely."

"Why don't we let this watch us? Maybe they can film it."

"…No."

"Then let's put them off to the side and we can get going."

"That's unfortunate."

"Indeed. It's gonna be just normal sex, sorry."

 **Author's note**

What? An update so early? What is this witchcraft? Boom, your mind is blown.

Seriously though, I'm posting this chapter early for two reasons. First is this is the double chapter week I promised you people and second is because I'm probably not uploading until the break is over. So that's about two weeks of no content, sorry guys.(Then again, my update rate is like super good around here. So not feeling too bad.)

Also sorry for the short chapter. Look, pacing, okay? You don't want me to rush outta content and make you all wait like two month for an update, that's bad.

Now here I talk about my usual self-advertising stuff and ask you all to favourite and all that. You know, because I'm shameless. However, I'll promise everyone that I'll never hold this fic hostage by demanding reviews or any of that stuff. If I don't update, the possibility if that I'm lazy or just busy, but mostly lazy.

Also shoutout to that guy who linked me a Muv-Luv whatever-it-was video in his/her review. You know who you are, good link, buddy.

I liked how the animation or whatever when they fight was accurate to how the fight scenes are done in the visual novel. When they do a first flip, someone literally just photoshopped the picture of a TSF and sprung it 360 degrees, budgets! (Please let the new release be better.)

BETA done by chad001. I'm really outta jokes, so instead I'll link you and everyone a video to watch.(not the same video) You won't know what this is but I promise it's not NSFW like hentai or stuff, it's on YouTube.

So type the usual YouTube address, youtube dot com (because this site doesn't actually let people post links. Must been a great idea at the time.) And add this. /watch?v=uD4gVjlMpvI&list=FL7uQfmuE8BQnFTzCkZt-SZQ&index=10


	24. A special day's success

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 16, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Uumm… huh…?" I greeted another charming morning with a yawn. A moment out of fiction occurred as I noticed nobody bothered to wake me up during this particular daybreak.

"Agaaa."

To wake up naturally was the equivalent of lighting a fire while under the sea for me. After thinking about my schedule for this day I foolishly realized today was actually Sunday; AKA the sleep-in day, which was exactly what I tried to do.

"Agaaaaa."

It was sort of difficult to find my way back to dreamland after being pulled to this cold reality, yet I attempted to reunite with my hibernation without giving up hope.

"Agaaaaaaaaaaa."

"…What?" Ignoring Kasumi any further was impossible since she literally mounted me. I could detect another source of wetness somewhere on my stomach which I will not investigate for now.

"My butt hurts, Takeru-san."

"Not my fault."

"You were spanking me really hard yesterday." Maybe it was my fault.

"Not… like forcefully though! I was making you feel good."

"Takeru-san is too much of a S." She said while calmly trying to ride me. One of her hands was pushing down on my chest for support while she seductively moistened her other hand's finger in her mouth.

"Who even taught you this, Kasumi?" Her completely deadpan character while performing provocative acts was erotic in its own right.

"You did, Takeru-san." I sure did that long ago, no regrets though.

"Wanna get me back then?

"Okay, this will be round fifteen." Apparently, we were both very… energetic people.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Hallway**

"Taka— 1st Lt. Takamura, wait." Hearing her own name being addressed, Yui turned and became instantly unnerved by the presence of a perfect copy of Japan's Shogun, Mitsurugi Meiya.

"…Mitsurugi-sama! Please do not address me so formally! I am only a servant of the imperial family!" Almost instinctively, Yui bowed her head in the direction of Mitsurugi. The Imperial Household member only smiled inwardly to herself.

"Very well then. Huhuhu, you can raise your head now, Takamura."

"Thank you." Yui quickly stood back up with respect.

"I am pleasantly surprised by your knowledge of me, Takamura. My presence here is currently still a secret, even if it happens to be not very well kept."

"Eh? Ah, yes. I have read your profile along with the rest of your team." Yui answered honestly.

"Is that so? So you only realized my identity recently?"

"Yes, Her Highness' announcement for the incorporation of the Mitsurugi bloodline into the Koubuin Household was delivered to all Imperial Royal Guard divisions shortly after."

Yui came to know the news two days before her arrival at Yokohama, so no doubt it shocked her to a fair amount when she noticed the purple Type-00 just casually parked in the hanger. Finally, seeing Mitsurugi's name confirmed her suspicion about the true identity of its Eishi.

"Huh, interesting. Her Highness certainly makes some… rash selections as of late. I only pray that her heavy duty does not cause any extra burden." Mitsurugi closed her eyes and ignored Yui for a while when she had no comments to add.

"Well, nevertheless, what is your purpose here, Takamura? Of course, you do not have to answer if your doing is considered as classified."

"Ah, no, Mitsurugi-sama. I am here as a representative for the Ministry of defence, they wish to cooperate farther with the Alternative project." A look was shot Yui's way when she spoke half of the truth.

"Is that it? You have no other agenda besides carrying out an inspection?" It was fearsome how Mitsurugi pinpointed the missing part of her story so easily.

"…I also wish to seek the Alternative Project's support for my own program."

"That is much more logical, I now understand why Takeru was acting unpleasant towards you." Again, Mitsurugi's reveal disconcerted Yui.

"You have something that he wants, do you not?" She closed the distance between them two with a riveting smile, Yui opted to say nothing back.

"I have no right to sway your opinion, Takamura. However, I do believe that whatever he demanded, he offered something equal or greater of value in exchange. Did he not?" Yui avoided Mitsurugi's sight when she questioned.

"…I ca—"

"Do not answer that. I understand that it will still be your choice by the end, so I do not assume anything I claim will be of help. Still, allow me to say this; as someone who worked closely with Takeru for months, he is still an honourable man. Even if his personality does not present himself as such, he is worthy of the potential risk."

"Mitsurugi-sama…" Yui lifted her head to meet a gentle, affectionate gaze from the Imperial member before her.

Mitsurugi's eyes were not that of a master looking down on a servant, they were candid views of a trustworthy friend; something Yui was direly missing from her life as of the moment.

"You can rely on me if you so desire, Takamura. For it is I who owes you and your family for their life-long service and dedication to my bloodline." With that, Mitsurugi kindly gave Yui a short hug and a light pat on her back.

"…Thank you very much, Mitsurugi-sama. I… will wholeheartedly consider your words."

"That is enough for me. You have my thanks." It was such a bright, beautiful smile Mitsurugi gave her, a smile Yui haven't seen in ages.

"Really… thank you… Mitsurugi-sama." For once, Yui was able to found another friend in her journey filled with sorrow and sadness.

"Huhuhu, let us leave that topic behind then. Do you have any time as of now?" She was interested in switching the subject of their discussion.

"Ah, yes, of course."

"Then walk with me, Takamura."

 **Path by the cherry blossoms**

"Why… are we here, Mitsurugi-sama?"

"These cherry blossoms, we believe the souls of those we fell in battle rest here. They watch over us, silently praying for our safety and success."

Of all places, Mitsurugi took Yui to the hill of dead trees in front of the base. It was a road paved with cherry blossoms on either side, a curvy walkway leading up to the hilltop.

"Yet loss of lives in war cannot be avoided, our fight still has no end in sight. With that said, I wish to thank you, for you and your family's sacrifice."

"There is no need, Mitsurugi-sama! You have already given me this honour once before!" It was several minutes ago when Mitsurugi said something very similar.

"Takamura Masatada… he is one of the most influential Fudai to have ever lived. The man who designed both the Type-82 Zuikaku and the Type-74 PB Blade. While I do not know your father personally, his name carries not a small fame along."

"…My father…"

"So bringing you here… is the least I can do. May he watch over us as he has watched over all those that have been saved thanks to his creation."

"Father…" When Mitsurugi paused for Yui to speak her thoughts, she only repeated the same word over and over again.

"What is the matter, Takamura?"

"…That's right… isn't it? He… he died here, during Operation Lucifer… hihihi…" As Yui remembered the heartbreaking fact, a few creepy giggles escaped her mouth.

"Takamura?" Mitsurugi moved closer to Yui's back, she was probably unsettled by her untimely chuckle.

"Haahaa… I completely forgot him. Until just now… it has been so long, too long now." Yui shook her head slowly, expressing her hidden regret for failing to keep her father in mind.

"Three years ago mankind made its first ever retribution towards the BETA right here, it was our first ever victory in this age long war. Yet the price we paid was immeasurable; a Pyrrhic victory, if you will."

Yui softly nodded to Mitsurugi's statement, the countless lives lost during the battle of Objective 22 rested under the cherry blossom by her feet.

"After the battle, His burde— commitment was passed on to me. The dream of my father and the hope of my mother, both rest upon my shoulders…" Her mouth mumbled words of conviction, yet her soul was uncertain of her future.

"Do you believe in your loyalty to my nation, Takamura?" An off-topic question from Mitsurugi took Yui by surprise.

"…Yes. My family has endured plentiful of hardships throughout the years for the sake of Japan. I am the heir to my blood, a vassal to our empire. My entire life is for the glory of our homeland."

"Such are vague words, Takamura. I asked you as person, not a mere servant." The manner of a vassal taught to Yui was rejected by Mitsurugi who required an answer from her heart.

"I… with the blood of father in my veins, the duty to my household is where I stand." Yui swallowed her true feelings again when she replied the second time. She just couldn't split out the truth that troubled her mind.

"You are still dishonest with yourself, I can see this much."

"I—!" Maybe Yui already knew her lie was going to be seen through this easily.

"It is fine. As you said, your family has been a great service to Japan, your father gave his life for our triumph; an honourable feat, no doubt. So many will say it is your obligation to fill the shoes he left behind, and they would be mostly correct."

"And I plan on achieving the honour bestowed upon my name, please believe this much, Mitsurugi-sama." If there were doubts directed in Yui's direction, she will make sure they no longer exist by the end.

"I do know that you will not bring shame to your name. Nonetheless, you are still tormented by your inability to decide."

A soft sigh was released into the air as Yui finally resigned her attempt at tricky. To her credit, she followed the template for an Honour Guard as close as possible, but it just wasn't enough to fool the eyes of Mitsurugi.

"Do you know… of our conversation?" Yui realized how Mitsurugi was leading her to a particular conclusion.

"Indeed, I overheard your discussion with Takeru in the hanger." It took Yui some time to remember who she was referring to.

"Haa… I really can't hide anything… Mitsurugi-sama… in the end, I am still lost… I cannot choose between my two selves." It should had been a simple decision for Yui, it should had been so simple to abandon one and save the other; however, she just couldn't pick what she valued more.

"Do you know what this is, Takamura?" When Yui turned around in response to Mitsurugi's words, a pair of swords was presented before her.

"Are these your Daisho, Mitsurugi-sama?" The most eye-catching feature of the Shogun's twin; other than her appearance, was the set of blades she carried by her waist at all times.

"Indeed." Mitsurugi held both her weapons with dignity, her hands twisted each of the swords gracefully as they drew arcs perfectly in the air.

"May I ask why they do not match?" While both the Katana and the Wakizashi were absolutely stunning in their own right, the two did not complement each other to any degree.

Mitsurugi pushed up on the hand guard of her Katana and revealed the thin steel to the tiniest amount. She then carefully reached it out to Yui, meaning for her to unsheathe it completely.

"If you don't mind, Mitsurugi-sama." Delicately, Yui drew the blade of her lord, its flawless edge and breathtaking design awed her with its beauty.

"Minaru Kamui, my sword who accompanied me even before my language was learned. It represents my role, it is who I am to our land." It wasn't like Yui didn't think Mitsurugi's burden would be any lighter than hers. It wouldn't even be an exaggeration to say Yui's trouble was a little bother in the eyes of her.

"And this… hehehe, my naming sense is surely lacking—" While Yui was still very intrigued by the long sword shown to her, Mitsurugi had pulled her Wakizashi and was studying its tip with an unreadable expression.

"This is Yamato Takeru. Given to me by the man of my life." Yui's face was mildly tinted red after she understood the implication of what she heard.

"He is my purpose, my guardian, my entirety. Without that man, I would not be myself. Instead only a shadow, a failsafe in case of emergency. Maybe only a slave to my endless night."

"Do you… dislike your previous duty, Mitsurugi-sama?" Asked Yui naturally.

"Of course not, the furniture's role is only to serve; its value determined by its capability. However, I will never detest what is asked of me before he took me along. For without seeing a colourless world, how can I truly enjoy this luminosity?"

A gaze brimming with candour and fulfillment was beaming from Mitsurugi's pupils. That was the appearance of a righteous heart, an unwavering resolve.

Yui was rendered speechless by the lines of Mitsurugi. In front of her was a person who had broken away from the function demanded of her by their society, a person who was free from her shackles even when she should be the one bounded most firmly by her fate.

And this was also when Yui felt jealous for the first time in ages. She too wished to have everything, to have her own good end. However, the possibility was just not there, her dream had no intention of becoming fulfilled.

"Takamura, you have two selves. The Takamura Yui of the Imperial royal Guards, a servant to the Imperial family, to me. However you are also Takamura Yui, a person, a woman of Japan."

"So while you are a vassal to the nation, you are still a free soul. An end has to be reached; if not now, eventually. And you can choose, you have to choose for yourself."

"T-that's what I don't know how to do…! Please help me, Mitsurugi-sama!" Since the beginning, Yui only had one dilemma.

"Seeking assistance from outside is the first mistake. 'A man chooses, a slave obeys.' Do not disappoint me with your lack of resolution, no servant of mine is incapable of thinking for themselves."

"Then… how can I select my end…?"

"Ask yourself this, Takamura. Just who are you, exactly?"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Kasumi… you doing good?"

"Haa-aaa… Aggaaahh." Well, at least she had an expression this time.

Kasumi's tongue was tiredly hanging outside her mouth, her pair of pearly amethyst eyes slightly rolled up towards the ceiling. If there was ever an aspect of Kasumi that I could describe as ecstatic, this was the closest I was gonna get.

"You… are too… rough… T-Takeru-san…"

"…Sorry, I tend to forget you're… kinda fragile."

I sat to the side of an incapacitated Kasumi, she was in no shape to pull herself together after the short session we enjoyed this morning.

"Please… let me rest here for… a while."

"Okay, I'll take a stroll around the place then." I pulled up my blanket over Kasumi's naked figure before quietly exiting my own room.

 **That classic tree behind Hakuryou**

'I seriously don't get this. It's like every bitch on this planet loved the fuck outta this dead tree behind the base. Like honestly, what the fuck?'

My aimless wandering brought me to a classical location where I met up with a newcomer to this tradition.

"Takamura, sup. What you doing here?" A lone, Japanese girl leaned onto the old, dead tree that oversaw countless tales between the hearts of people. It was a tree of memories, a place of reminiscence.

"Ah, Capt. Shirogane. Good morning." Takamura took a proper stance and saluted me, there was a trace of misery in the eyes that stared me back. She was also in pain, like all those that lived in this desperate world.

"You too. How's the view from here? Like what you're seeing?" I slowly walked up to her opposite side and felt the dry bark that witnessed many conclusions.

"This place… this scenery… is our bloodshed not enough to end such brutality?" Takamura's sight extended far out to the sea, over our old home.

She saw a ruin in front of her, a destroyed town and destroyed past. I, too was contemplating the same landscape. We stood together with only the tree in between us, it was an unexplainable environment we shared.

"This path… the only path we could take is crafted from our own blood, painted in the blood of those who went before us so we could continue walking." Humanity lost so much in this war, and it will continue losing until its end.

"Where did those days go… I wonder? How much more do we have to lose… before we can go back to that time?" From where I stood, Takamura's feature was not perceptible. Yet somehow, I could clearly understand the sadness that overshadowed her face.

"We can keep everything, or we can forfeit everything. It all depends on the people of tomorrow, how they will fight, how they will protect those they hold dear. This stage is for those are living, at this present. You and me, we will make a difference." Since the mood called for it, I dropped some wisdom on Takamura in an attempt to brighten her spirit.

"…The stage of the living… there's a way… as long as people are alive… right?"

"That's why our existence is so precious, only the living can fight for our future." She spoke no more afterwards, the sound of irregular breathing coming from the opposing side was all that remained.

"Capt. Shirogane, are you busy right now?" Takamura asked me a normal question after minutes.

"Only reason I'm discussing philosophy with you is because I'm not getting paid for today's work. So yeah, I'm free."

"Huhu, as an Eishi of the UN, you sure don't take your job seriously." Now she just got to insult me for no reason.

"You want me to go back to work then?"

"I did not say that, I only stated the fact that you're unoccupied despite being a soldier." Did this girl want to fight me or something?

I emerged from the opposite side and came face to face with Takamura, but her slight smile was pleasant enough to stop me from further argument.

"Then I'll just leave, give me a time."

"I can provide that." Takamura reached in her uniform's chest pouch, a pocket watch was pulled out instinctively before she suddenly discerned her action and blanked out for a bit.

"Ara, nevermind, Captain. I forgot my watch broke." I caught a glance of her silver pocket watch and came to the same assumption instantly.

The metal timepiece had an oval structure just like every other pocket watch, the only and major difference was a giant crater of impact in the middle and many cracks that expanded from that point outwards.

It was obvious the damage was caused by nothing else than a high calibre sniper, as nothing else could bend a Super-carbon watch like this. I logically assumed the material to be Super-carbon as it's game over for any normal metal.

"…Did you… shoot your watch?" I gawked at Takamura with a confused expression.

"No, someone else did."

"…When they tried to shoot you?"

"Yes." She answered me in the most nonchalant manner possible.

"…Just how lucky are you? I'm gonna just guess the shooter had either piss-poor aim or is a god-tier sniper, one of the two." The princess only shrugged off my comment.

"It was kind of funny, I only lived because this watch blocked the bullet. The shot hit my mid-torso, just instead of a .338 it was an 8 centimetre Super-carbon that impacted." Takamura subconsciously moved her hand to the left side of her chest, below the breast.

"You okay now? Any permanent wound?"

"No— well, I have this scar left. The watch still hit me pretty hard, sometime it itches when I take a bath but mostly it's only a change of the skin." That was very unfortunate, bikinis for Takamura will have to wait. Or maybe it can be enjoyed as fashion.

"Huh, I see." Suddenly we had no more subjects to continue on about, I retracted behind the tree again as to avoid her sight and this awkward moment.

"Will you be going, Captain?"

"Do you want me to leave?" I took Takamura's silence as a denial to my question.

"I have dragged this on for long enough, continue to talk with you will not yield any further results."

"Again, do you say stuff like this just to piss me off? Because let me tell you; it's working great." Like a deer caught in headlight, she gave me a puzzled look like she had no clue to what I was on about.

"If I happened to offend you, I apologize. However, I do think you would be interested in what I have to say."

"I don't doubt that, so talk." Before whatever real conversation she wanted to have, Takamura first giggled awkwardly to herself.

"Eehehe… my willpower really can't be compared to him… after all. Ahhha, sorry, Yuuya. Take this as my resentment for your ignorance." I watched her monologue without a word.

"The family of Takamura has passed down its name through ages as a Fudai Household for our empire. I cannot drag that name into the dirt for my own selfishness, that… is my verdict, that is who I am."

Duty over feelings, this was the final answer Takamura presented me. It wasn't my place, nor anyone's to judge that. Ever.

"Huh, I really thought that I'd have to try harder." By Takamura's announcement and facial expression, I already guessed to my victory.

"You guessed wrong, I have always been this weak when it came to making decisions. I couldn't pick the more noble choice, so I'll fold here." Her foot twisted swiftly and her back was once again all I saw.

"As the head officer of the XFJ Program, I will do what I can to see it to fruition… even if this indicates working under the Alternative IV Project. I'll expose the intelligence you seek, Capt. Shirogane."

Takamura's determination and loyalty to her family had trumped her personal feelings. It was inevitable, really. For a princess held high in a castle who knew nothing of the world, she wouldn't have picked anything else.

"But do not be mistaken about one point. I did not, in any form, come to this conclusion easily. If I must betray that man, then I'll make sure to at least be the one who selects his pursuer." She turned around and declared to me with a sad light in her eyes.

Maybe the princess was learning to be human faster than others believed. But that didn't matter anymore, I caught her before her opinion wavered. Still, she received my full respect for the brave struggle she endured. As a person of our world, I truly believe she will live beautifully till the end.

"Thank you, 1st Lt. Takamura. And Alternative IV welcomes your program, we'll discuss the details together with the Professor." We came to an agreement I knew she couldn't back away from soon enough.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Is there anything else you wish to know, Professor?"

"No, this here is plenty. Alternative IV thanks you for your help, Takamura."

"Then please uphold your end of the deal, ma'am." With the same smug smile as when she met her, Kouzuki slid some sheets of paper across the desk to Yui.

"I need you to sign here, here, here, here and here." It was more like a mountain of paper, in reality.

Yui promptly picked up the articles and examined the contract thoroughly, multiple times before finally writing her signature down carefully.

"Will this be all, Professor?" Asked Yui after she passed back the papers.

"Pretty much, yep. Let me restate our agreement then." The Vice-Commander secretly laughed from before the neatly stacked pages.

"With regards the case #2231: In response to assistance provided by First Lieutenant Takamura Yui of the Imperial Royal Guards, Alternative IV Project hereby agrees to five covenants."

"Number one: UN guarantees the proper treatment of United States Army deserter Yuuya Bridges in case of arrest."

"Number two: The team tasked with the subject's arrest will carry out regulated protocol during the subject's capture operation and will not apply lethal force during the operation."

"Number three: After the subject's apprehension is confirmed, he will be escorted safety to an UN operated Base."

"Number four: Once the subject is secured, he will be delivered to US mainland and brought forward to a proper trial before the United States Courts-martial to determine possible crimes."

"Lastly number five: The UN will witness the subject's fair and just trial. In case of the subject's discharge; regardless of honour, the subject will be offered a suitable position within the United Nation Army. Specifically under the Alternative IV Project. That is all."

The temperature in this office as of now was cool, a good and comfortable Celsius for us humans. However, the ice, the freezing glaze trapping Yui's heart in her chest showed no sign of melting.

"Happy with this, Takamura? Anything you want to add?" There were a million things Yui wished for Kouzuki to promise, none of them she would actually give her word on.

"…No, ma'am."

"Good, let's talk about your side of the deal, then. XFJ may just be valuable enough."

—

"—and thus, all property of the XFJ Program; whether owned permanently or on loan will be fully transferred to the Alternative IV Project. All rights to the procession and usage of said assets will belong to Alternative IV's direct overseers. That is all."

There was not a smidge wiggle room stamped in the spaces between each merciless line of text. Yui knew she no longer possessed any part of the XFJ Program in reality, and she was okay with that; she must be okay with that.

"Looking at the big picture, we really just helped you twice, you know?" A while later, Kouzuki provoked Yui again in a conceited manner.

"…"

"I mean, we're taking up your request to not hurt your cute boyfriend and, and also saving your precious family business from shutting down! You're welcome for that."

"…" If Yui did her best to filter out Kouzuki's sarcastic comments, maybe the aching pain deep in her chest could fade away.

"I said. You. Are. Welcome. Takamura Yui, Lieutenant." However, Kouzuki was not that kind of a person.

"…Thank you… very much for your assistance, Professor… Kouzuki." Even though Yui knew the humiliation she was suffering was worth it, the knowledge somehow didn't making swallowing her pride any less painful.

"C'mon now, say it with a bit more enthusiasm. Act like how all you Honour Guard people act." The Professor didn't seemed satisfied with her previous demand and shamelessly added another.

Yui clenched her teeth, hiding the newly formed flame of fury that co-existed with the earlier frost. She slowly raised from her chair in front of Kouzuki's desk and very slowly and painfully bowed down until her forehead bonked the cold surface of the table.

"…Takamura Yui of the Imperial Royal Guards… is forever grateful… for the magnanimous aid… that was kind-heartedly granted to me by the brilliant director… of Alternative IV…"

"Hihihihi… hehehehe… AHAHAHA! Alright, that's good enough for now, Takamura! Don't forget who'll be feeding you from now on. Hahaha… leave." With a laugh befitting for a mad-scientist, Kouzuki waved her hand to scoot away an extremely disgraced Yui.

"Please, excuse me." Lucky for Yui, she couldn't stand another second in the same room as her new superior.

"Oh, wait. Call Shirogane for me. He's probably somewhere just outside."

"Certainly, ma'am."

 **Hallways**

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"Ah, hey, Takamura. What's the matt—"

"—the Professor wants you."

"Huh, okay. What did she say she wants with…" Not waiting to hear my sentence, Takamura hasty walked away leaving a trait of angry footsteps in her wake.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Hey, sensei."

"Morning, Shirogane. Takamura called you?"

"Sure did, very pissed off, but did call me. Is she on her period or something?"

"Wow, going straight to that, huh? Guess elegance is not your strong suit."

"Well… either that or you played with her too much. You played with her too much, didn't you."

"…I refuse to answer that question, and I refuse to reveal why I refused."

"Ahhhaa… just… don't break her, okay? She's my piece as well."

"Funny, I thought we're playing on the same side."

"Which we are, but it's like one side of chess for two players. We have our own moves in mind, however there's only one of each of the pieces."

"Heh, then find your own chessboard."

"The only seat that's not here is the opposite one, and I don't think you want me to be playing for the other side."

"…I'll keep that in mind, let's move onto something else."

—

"Alright, the mission plan is done." Almost immediately afterwards, Yuuko-sensei announced the completion of our operation outline.

"…Isn't this too fast?"

"What? Don't trust me or something?" I raised my arms in mock surrender to show her my confidence.

"Of course not. In fact, if you say we go; we go."

"Good, because you'll be going on the 21th of December." After stating the date, sensei clicked a few times on a remote and the monitor lid up to show me a bit more detail.

"This… is surprisingly simple."

"I'm not some cartoon villain, Shirogane. The simpler the better." Which sensei was very right about.

"Got ya. A classic insertion and extraction, catch and release."

"Exactly, grab them and bring them here. Even a child could do this much."

"One question though, will you be notifying the DIA of this plan?" There were hidden threats and dangers behind every step we take, after all.

"…Not giving them everything, but we can't keep them in the dark any longer. Now that they delivered their end of the deal, they'll be watching carefully to make sure we do the same."

"Alright, how about this. We'll give them that date, but I want to mobilize a day early." Yuuko-sensei gave me a judging look before losing interest.

"Security is important, I agree. Have it your way then." For a matter that didn't appeal enough to sensei, she quickly let it slip her by.

"Cool, I'll arrange accordingly."

 **Shirogane's room**

I was much more tired than usual this afternoon. Having dealt with Takamura and the upcoming mission, I lacked the energy to continue working when such a comfy bed was waiting for me.

Since it was still my break and Kasumi had already left, I cleaned up a bit and went for an afternoon nap.

 **Kagami Sumika**

"Ekkk! Takeru-chan is still asleep!"

"It's four in the afternoon though …let's just sick him."

"Please don't, Kei-san."

"That'll be terrible! And we don't even have animals around here!"

"A-anyway! Let's think of a different way to wake Takeru-san!"

"Don't worry, I got a plan."

"Please don't, Kei-san."

"…Trust me."

"Yeah, that'll end great."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

I saw a dream, it was a dream of people living innocently, without knowing the meaning of peace. Until a giant ass cake fell on the world and caused several tsunamis which wiped out the east coast of America, killing millions while damaging—

"AGRAAwhatthefuck!" The sensation of ice-cold water splashing on my face followed by a metal bucket dropping on my chest ruined any remaining chance of going back to the dream world.

"…Wait… that was an accident." Beside my wet bed stood Ayamine, she only looked stoic now because she was about to receive a full dose of my rage.

"The FUCK, WOMAN!?" The first thing I did that afternoon was furiously banging the forehead of Ayamine.

"Aaaa, ouch. You don't have to be so—" The rest her sentence was interrupted by the bucket that I dunked over her useless head.

"Shut the fuck up! I'll have you lick up this water, shithead! Now GET THE FUCK OUT!" Throwing my tantrum as I repeatedly pound on the bucket which covered Ayamine, she got the boot right out of my room under a minute.

"Argaaa." Then I properly slammed the door in her face, along with the rest of my girls who chose to wisely watch from the safety of the halls.

 **Kagami Sumika**

"You deserved that, Ayamine."

"My hands slipped." After receiving a beating for justifiable reason from Takeru, Kei regrouped with the girls outside him room for another meeting.

"Mou… that was dumb, Ayamine-san." Sumika lifted the bucket off Kei's head and patted the spot of transferred collision.

"At least Takeru woke up, right? Right?"

"Don't worry, he's up." Mikoto was relieved of his concern after being advised.

"What should we do now?"

"Let's wait for him to get ready and then we can all go there!" Answered Sumika when Chizuru asked.

"What about Meiya-san? What should we do?"

"Ohh… riiight." Sumika simply forgot the existence of her rival in love.

"We'll leave a note for Takeru and get Mitsurugi, she's probably in her room now." No one disagreed with Chizuru's plan.

"Haaa, shouldn't we have done something more for them?" Everyone pondered a bit over Mikoto's words, thinking about how little they prepared.

"There's nothing we could do, Yoroi-san. Besides, if we make it too fancy, Takeru-chan will say we're wasting precious military assets and stuff!" The rest were somewhat content with Sumika's justification.

"Then let's put all our feelings into it! I'm sure they'll like that!"

"That's right. Takeru and Mitsurugi are understanding people, after all. And we're still soldiers."

"Let's all do our very best!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"Alright! I'm gonna make you all pay…" And there was nobody waiting to face my wrath outside.

After overcoming my misery for missing a good one-sided beat-down, I noticed a little anomaly stuck to my door. A piece of note that read 'Come to the Royal Guard PX at 9!' in bold red marker, like some sort of low-quality bait.

I honestly wouldn't have paid any heed if it's wasn't for the obviously childish handwriting that could only be the work of a stupid supercomputer. Since my attendance was requested about three hours from now, I put this free time to good use by gaming seriously.

 **Imperial Royal Guard PX**

As I paced casually toward where Tsukuyomi and her bunch housed, an outline of a certain blue haired girl reflected in my eyes.

"Yaho, Meiya. You going to their PX as well?"

"By all means, I was invited by Sumika to gather here at nine. A bit later than I would have liked, but welcomed nonetheless." Meiya wore her UN fatigues with her dog-tags loosely hanging over her bouncy chest; wordlessly, I reached out to give them both a firm squish on instinct.

"K-kyaa! W-w-what are you doing, Takeru!?" She instantly retracted back and covered her fully-clothed chest.

"What? They were just there, a shame if I didn't do anything."

"Urra, such inelegance… baka! I cannot believe such a man like you somehow captured my heart." The shocker Meiya dropped fazed me moderately, but then her follow up kiss almost ruined my composure.

—

"Muurrnnmhaa…"

"That… was very skillful, I applaud your braveness." The kiss kinda sorta lasted a bit longer.

"Still so confident, Takeru." I was never a man to back down from any fight, not even in relationship.

"—you two wanna stop flirting and come inside instead?" A very emotionlessly upset Ayamine suddenly appeared.

"A-A-Ayamine! When did you arrive?!" Meiya then proceed to get immediately flustered in the presence of another.

"I didn't… you arrived." She pointed to the building that we ended up at without realization.

"Nice, very smooth, me. Now let's go inside instead of freezing out here."

I was all ready for a surprise when an open palm denied me of entrance into a much warmer location.

"Me too." Ayamine seemed unhappy about some issue.

"You what?"

"Kiss, give me one too. Make up for the beating today." I had to overcome a great dilemma that time, it was whether to tongue her until she drops on her knees or just an affectionate peck on the cheeks.

"Ayamine! Do not—" Meiya's sentence got shortened to an unsettled sigh when I already inserted my tongue into Ayamine's mouth.

"Murrnn… that was nice… aumaa" As the string of saliva that connected our lips broke apart, Ayamine moaned softly in ecstasy from the slight tease of pleasure I passed her.

"…This is somewhat unpleasant to watch."

"You want another one, Meiya?"

"…I shall remember this as a lesson, the next time I will be sure to mark you properly, Takeru."

"Let's go now, others are waiting." Ayamine then led the way as the trio of us entered through the doorways into an almost dark room.

We walked a bit further in darkness until I heard the faint footsteps of others that no doubt prepared all this. And it was during this time when my pupils slowly adjusted to the darkness that I understood exactly how important all these girls were to me, not like I didn't grasp their eminence before.

"…Psst, are we ready?"

"…Yeah." Some particularly quite whispers travelled around the room and eventually reached my ears just before the lights all flipped on simultaneously.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Takeru-(chan, san)! Meiya-(Mitsurugi)-san!" A shower of confetti rained down upon us as the claps and shouts of the girls washed away any boredom in my system.

"…This is…"

"We know it's your and Takeru-chan's birthday! So we put together this celebration for the both of you!" An ultra-cheerful Sumika rushed ahead of the pack and equipped both Meiya and I in birthday party hats.

"And we cooked some food for you too! Everyone spent a lot of time together trying to make all this!" Mikoto who was on par with Sumika in joy came forward next, behind her was a table of banquet to show their effort.

"Err…! I know this isn't the best or anything, but everyone tried r-realllly hard to cook all this!" Tama covered for the lack of grandeur with her enthusiasm.

"You all should like it. Happy birthday."

"Birthdays only happen once a year, after all. This is for you two, happy birthday." Ayamine and Class rep also sent us their heartfelt words of congratulation.

"…Ahhaa… I… I do not know the proper way to respond…" With an expression of pure bliss, Meiya shined with the most beautiful smile.

"You are thankful, right? Just tell them what you think, it's easy." After a short period of hesitation, Meiya stood tall, having taken my advice to heart.

"Everyone! I am very grateful for everything you have done! Being together with all of you has granted my life with many new meanings! Maybe I have yet to completely come to understand the prime method of being your friends, but the time we spent together will not be forgotten!"

It was a simply speech, a simply yet straightforward speech that drove home the point Meiya tried to convey.

"Meiya-san! We're all happy to be your friends, too!" The girls announced in unison, their friendship just reached a new height.

—

It was a plain dinner we had; much more stylish compared to our daily meal, sure, but the food of my old world was still peerless in my memories.

"How is it, Takeru-chan? I made the Mapo Tofu and the Takoyaki!"

"I'm just happy you didn't put everything in a pot and cooked it with spice. Good work."

"Yaay! I learned!"

—

While Tsukuyomi and the idiots weren't there to celebrate with us, they left us this elegant dinner in their diner with some per-cooked dishes for our enjoyment.

"…What could this be? Fish… and potato?"

"Ah, that's called fish and chips! An English food! You're supposed to dip the fried fish with this sauce, Meiya-san!"

"Hmm… did you make this sauce yourself, Yoroi? It is quite delicious."

"Ahehe, I did! My dad brought me this book on easy food from his travels!"

—

My team also added their own touches with extra plates and cookeries which reminded me of the fond days back home. It was so peaceful then, everyone was so naïve during those days.

"I made this."

"Don't lie, woman. I made this, that's my yakisoba."

"I added some more stuff."

"You put it on a plate, that's not adding."

—

Even if that sort of happiness had long since died, I still found this slice of rapture within my new home.

"Here, Takeru-san. The curry is left by Tsukuyomi-san."

"I can eat by myself, Kasumi."

"Okay."

—

We sat together by the round table, enjoying this glimmer of glee before the fated path covered in blood. Even if our lives were nothing more than a flash in this dreaded world, those wishes for a better tomorrow cannot be more pure.

—

However, all good things, like food, will eventually come to an end. And just like the fun we had together was over when we depleted our supply of nourishment, the happy day reached its conclusion when everyone left for the night.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"That wasn't very funny of a joke, Kagami."

"Because I'm a hundred percent serious, sensei." It was a humourless conversation between Kagami and her creator.

The usual bright office was all darkened out expect for a dim source of light originating from Kouzuki's computer. She was all done for the day when Kagami and Yashiro came in with a not-so-pleasant surprise.

"First, this is a Russian project that we only recently learned about from the CIA's database. And second, the risk of undergoing this experiment isn't even worth the reward."

"It will be worth it, I'll make it so." Kagami was no stranger to rejecting logic.

"Ahhaa, you know you're the 00 unit, right? Who's going to pilot the XG-70 if you're running about the field in a TSF?"

"I won't be in the Susanoo all the time, right? Besides, it's not hard to climb from one machine to the other." While Kagami indeed had changed her machine during an attack, Kouzuki wandered if it was nearly as flawless as she exaggerated.

"That's not the problem here, you understand that too. I cannot risk modifying the people's last hope, MY project's last hope." Kouzuki was hard-set on refusing Kagami's demand, it was just that Kagami wasn't in a position where she would back down.

"Kouzuki-sensei, I only want to use this as a way to better protect Takeru-chan, our friends and also this world. There was too many times… too many times when I could have saved others, but I was too weak to do anything. The Susanoo could only carry me this far, I need everything to better protect his dream." With a hint of trauma, Kagami ended her unprepared speech.

"We need more power, Professor. Please." Yashiro also added her opinion.

As a scientist, Kouzuki only believed in what she could prove. The feeling and determination of others was always a non-factor to the genius. Then again, the past month and a half had been the most mind-boggling time in her twenty-seven years of life.

A self-proclaimed Causality Conductor knocked loudly on her door and fixed her theory with his more successful version that brought the 00 unit into being. Then the man accomplished some magnificent feats during his short stay such as scheming and achieving Alternative V's downfall, albeit with her support.

It was willpower and commitment the young man showed to her, and it was with such strength that he overcame the desperate past.

"Kagami, do you know the procedure we need to make for this operation of yours to work?"

"Yes, install a stimulation concept to the central processor and route the conductors, right? I think I can do that myself." Kouzuki was about ninety-nine percent sure Kagami couldn't perform the surgery on her own, it was that one percent which she doubted.

"How about you, Yashiro? You know the procedure to activate Prafka for you?"

"Fine-tune the Prafka effect undertone with medication and releasing mental barriers." Kouzuki-sensei let out another sigh at Kasumi's correct answer.

"…Ahh, I'm tired too… here, look at this." Even when she was unwilling to further their conversation, Kouzuki still transferred the computer feed to the big screen for the duo of espers.

When Kouzuki first came upon the discovery of Prafka in one of the CIA's classified files, she herself even suspected its credibility. Nevertheless, all that reluctance was blown away when she saw a video clip of the said effect in action.

The tapped record was one of the few evidences of Russian esper experiment left. While its quality wasn't in 1080P HD, Kagami and Yashiro were able to appreciate the survival of such importance document.

In the video itself, a Su-37 could be recognized standing before a massive wave of BETA, they couldn't decide if it was either simulation or real-life. But it clearly didn't matter a few more seconds in.

The machine moved, faster than the eye could follow. As it rushed headfirst into war, into death, there was only one certainty that will result from the vibe of its action.

It will kill quicker, better and deadlier than anything they seen before. With a strange ray of light behind it, the TSF slayed all that stood before it.

Unfortunately, the clip ended just as things were getting good. Its abrupt termination brought Kagami and Yashiro back to the present day.

"…As a scientist, I have a craving to understand the unknown. I am as interested in this Prafka as you two, to be honest. We do have the equipment required to undergo the experiment here, there's only one concern I have. Kagami and Yashiro, how can you to be sure that nothing will go wrong?"

"Because I'm willing to take this risk, sensei. This… I can't let this chance go."

"Me too, it's for Takeru-san." Kouzuki's downward casted stare was useless on the two espers.

"Then you two should prepare yourselves. I don't think it's gonna be a fun time."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hallway**

"What a neat and satisfying dinner, they must have put tremendous effort into preparing such an event."

"True, I'm pretty sure they been working on this for three days now." My memory failed my again when I tried to recall how many times Sumika had celebrated my birthday in past loops.

After our party, we cleaned the place up and disbanded for the night. Meiya tagged along with me on a whim when I headed for my room, which only made sense since our quarters were metres away.

"Tell me the truth, Takeru. You knew about their plan beforehand, correct?"

"Emm, not really. I mean, kinda? Sumika is too dumb to hide this sort of stuff completely and it's not like there's another reason for them to act all secretive on our birthday."

"Huhuhu, if that is what you say. I shall believe that." I chuckled along with Meiya on our way back to the barrack.

"Yes… today is my birthday, which means it is also Aneue's birthday." Meiya, stating that obvious.

"Uh-huh, got that right."

"Haaa, I must be satisfied with my feelings alone for now. One day, I shall be by her side when this date comes around once more." A saddened sigh was heard, but in the sorrowful voice was a beacon for future happiness.

—

"Alright, I'll see you tomorrow, Meiya." With a light smooch on her forehead, I was all ready to leave Meiya for the night.

"…T-Takeru! Do you have any plans for tonight?!"

"Nope, I am free as a bird. Not like I'll be going anywhere though, so that example doesn't make much sense… how about like a plane…? That also wouldn't work—" I was lost in thought thinking about the better use of a metaphor.

"T-That is not what I meant!" A flustered Meiya shouted at me for my attention.

"Huh? What do you want then?"

"Y-you said you are free tonight, right?"

"Yeah."

"And today is our both of ours birthdays, c-correct?

"Sure is."

"And there should not be any misunderstanding between us about o-our r-r-relationship, right?"

"Unless you're wrong, we're fine."

"S-so-so-so i-i-is it okay for m-m-me to-to…" This was taking forever and some more time. Meiya was painted pure red at this point for obvious reasons, and I didn't help her out just because.

"You keep stuttering like that it's gonna be a habit. Meiya, speak!"

"Can I spent THE NIGHT WITH YOU!?" And there it was, I got bored seventeen times during her reveal.

"You wanna hang out? Sure, come on in."

"Ahaaa…" Once I unbolted my door and basically dragged a super embarrassed Meiya with me, another long night was about to take off.

 **Shirogane's room**

"See? If you fold this edge backwards and clip the sizes, it makes exactly NOTHING!" I shouted as a blanket was thrown to the back of the room.

"Emm…" Meiya nervously rested on my bed without as much as moving a finger, which was what caused my frustration seconds ago. Many of my methods of getting her to react all ended in failure.

After inviting her in, we stood around in total awkwardness before sitting down in total awkwardness. I clearly knew what she wanted, I just desired to force the feelings out of her first, which was clearly making no progress.

"So it's almost midnight now, guess I'll get this over with." My impatience won out in the end.

"H-hum? W-what is that you wish to end?"

"Your virginity." I delivered that line without missing a beat.

"WHA—" I didn't give her a chance to protest before I sealed her lips.

"Shh, shh. You wanted this, right? Just keep your head down and ass up, let me take care of this." The sentence was whispered seductively as I lightly bit on Meiya's ear, she was about to yelp if I didn't insert my fingers into her mouth.

"Ummuura…! T-t-t-t-TAKERU! W-w-what are you— Muuuunn!" Starting off a bit forceful wasn't too bad of a play either.

I clutched both of Meiya's hands and held them down by pushing her down onto my bed, her short struggle wore off in seconds followed by a mutual kiss that lasted much longer.

"Meiya… sorry about that, couldn't control myself."

"Takeru… it is fine, that is much more like you."

"I… I love you, Meiya."

"Me too, my heart is destined to be yours, Takeru. Let us continue this moment, I will forever be with you."

"Same, I'll never leave you… again." Our lasting evening sustained its peace and tranquility after Meiya missed my last word.

 **Author's note**

Did you all think I was dead? Well you thought wrong. Sure, I took quite a long break, but here's an update, so stop complaining.

For the part about Yui being shot, that's canon, I didn't make it up. Short version is: One day Yui was walking, some sniper guy went pew! She was like ouch, fell down, starts bleeding, passes out, brought to the hospital, found out her watch saved her life. The end.

In other news, the Sarwnchemarken (I refuse to Google the actual spelling.) anime aired its first episode. It's about 1980s German people in the Alternative universe, go watch if you're interested. Airs every Sunday morning.

If you absolutely hated my portrayal of Yui and Meiya in this chapter, make sure to tell me, by reviewing, of course. But if there's actually a problem, be sure to let me know so I can fix it.

BETA done by chad001. As someone in college or university, I think you should be really thankful for your student loan. It did so much for you that I don't think you can pay it back.


	25. Sixty seconds in a minute

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 17, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

"Muunm… is it already the morning?"

"Ahhaa… should be. Lucky for us we don't have training today." I wrapped my arm around Meiya as she slowly rose up, still naked from before.

"How come I was not informed of the schedule change for this day?"

"Because I just changed it." After a little upset, Meiya quickly giggled at my usual self.

"Huhuhu, that is so much like you, Takeru." Having climbed my body off the bed, I also stood to don my uniform.

"Hnnnng, dat ass!"

"Kyaaa!" Since Meiya made the foolish mistake of wearing her top first, I got in a nice slap on her round butt.

"Awwaa! Takeru! Baka! Baka! Baka!"

"Hehehe, nice reaction." I mocked a malicious laugh for her trouble.

"Ahhhh! You are such a tease!" Meiya puffed her cheeks out in protest.

"Hahaha, good times."

"Moooou… Takeru, I cannot believe I would fall for the likes of you!"

"What? Regretting it? It's too late now."

"Of course not, I really… do love you." Expressing her lovey side following our little game, she gently kissed my temple as a sign of her affection.

Seeing her displaying her love so sincerely made me realize how little I treasured Meiya as of late. I got the bright idea to present my love just as beautifully.

"Meiya… wanna be my Noble Confidant?"

Which I totally fucked up.

"…"

"…" And only silence remained after that.

"…"

"…"

"Meiya."

"What is it, Takeru?"

"I was joking, I love you too."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah… you want to put your sword down now?"

"I shall consider your request." That standoff took around fifteen minutes… off my life.

 **Hallway**

"Please accept my apology, Takeru. It is mystery to myself too, for whatever reason, those words rile up a strong killing intent within my heart."

"Really? That's hard to believe." It was super easy to believe.

"I find it difficult to understand as well. It was a feeling of complete betrayal, yet the fault was only mine to blame."

"Yeah, okay. Just… stop, okay?"

"Huh? If that is what you wish." It was tooooooo embarrassing for me to think back to those days.

We spent the next few minutes commuting and chatting about some daily topics until an announcement over the PA called for every member of the Archangel squad.

 **Briefing room**

"Shirogane, you're late."

"Does it look like I give a fuck?" Yuuko-sensei followed that vulgarity with a sly laugh. Nonetheless, it was only Yuuko-sensei who found my insult to be entertaining. I got some dirty or discouraged looks from the other occupants of this room.

After Meiya took her seat as one of the Eishis under my command, I received a quick explanation from Yuuko-sensei on the subject of our gathering. Just as I anticipated, this was for the Shiranui Phase 3 case.

"We'll start briefing once the guest of honour arrives, Lieutenant—" It appeared that the mention by Yuuko-sensei of her name brought her right to us.

The doors slid open for a Takamura dressed in her Royal Guard uniform to steadily walk in. Some girls reacted slightly to her presence with Meiya being the only one calm about our situation. Disregarding their moods, my team stood up at once and saluted Takamura which she returned with respect.

"This is 1st Lt. Takamura of the Imperial Honour Guard. She's the one who provided intelligence for our upcoming operation." Again, my crew were taken back by the news I announced.

"It will be called 'Operation Reclaimer'. As its name implies, the objective of our mission is the successful capture of three rouge Eishis and the two TSFs they used to escape."

"The mission background is on a need-to-know base so I will go straight to the targets. If you don't mind, Lieutenant Takamura." After receiving a nod from her, I moved off to the side for Takamura to take center plate.

"This operation has three HVTs that need to be secured along with two Third-gen weaponized TSFs. The first Target will be called HVT 1, Barchenowa Cryska, ex-Second Lieutenant of the Soviet Army Base Б-01." Takamura begun to speak.

The huge monitor behind us flashed to life and displayed the profile of the same Russian girl about three, four years older than my physical self.

"The second Target, HVT 2, Sestina Inia, same as above." The screen scrolled down to unveil another profile. Kasumi was almost visually shaken by the Russian esper who I certainly knew was her twin.

"They are both experienced Surface Pilot for the Soviet Army's Alaska Military District and are popularly known as the Scarlet Twins of Russia. They have been serving in the military until around one month ago when they deserted their duty, together with our third and final target."

As the display behind her changed yet again, Takamura paused for a deviously long while before hesitantly continuing.

"HVT 3… Bridges… Yuuya, ex-Second Lieutenant of the US Army. He is under suspicion for possible connections with terrorist remnants along with also being a deserter of the US Army." Seeing Takamura was still uncomfortable with the presentation, I politely gestured for her to take a break which she agreed to without a fight.

"Now for their location, this intel is coming from two secure sources so we better hope we're not getting trolled." I glanced over at the Honour Guard with glee as she snorted lightly.

"Last reports of their sightings indicated the three HVTs were heading for the Kamchatka Peninsula region of Russia; more accurately, the abandoned ц-04 Frontline Supply Base. While their intention is currently unknown, this should be the best location to apprehend these targets."

I clicked the mouse a couple times to run through some maps of the surrounding area and the abandoned base itself.

"As for their TSFs, this could be a tricky one. Our intelligence suggested that the Scarlet Twins pilot a double seated Su-47E Berkut, they're said to be very dangerous and in case of engagement, extreme caution are to be taken as there's another unknown factor involved."

"…Prafka." Kasumi who sat in the front role whispered those words to herself, thinking that I was too far away to hear it.

"While we don't have sufficient information on its exact properties, the phenomenon, known as the Prafka Effect is said to boost the abilities of its Eishis during combat by a significant amount; to the point where a Prafka induced Su-47 took out a Regiment of BETA, two prototype Third-gen and a Takemikazuchi all under five minutes." My team widened their eyes a little at that declaration.

"But that's not all. Bridges is reported to be piloting a Third-gen Shiranui prototype that my frame is based on. Also carrying four Mount Pylons, multiple blade sheaths and vanes along with the second generation Data link hacking functions. I think we can see why this case got passed onto us."

"Use of lethal force is not authorized for this mission and thus we'll have to use non-lethal methods to secure the targets. And it will be by theses experimental electrical signal interceptor payloads; so EMP rounds in short." A few schematics were shown next of the bullets.

"A shot will disable the TSF by frying its control input system and rendering the surface fighter unresponsive." Tama raised her hand immediately after my lecture.

"What do you want, Tamase?"

"Errm, if these bullets only disable the TSFs, why don't we use it more often?" It was a little saddening having to rob her of another piece of innocence.

"Because normally we want the enemy dead, not captured. And these bullets have sub-sonic velocity which makes long-range accurate shooting impossible. We need fast time-to-kills on the battlefield, not throwing marshmallows at our foes." That wasn't all.

"Furthermore, how many parts does a TSF have?"

"The Head component, both main arms, upper and lower torso, left and right legs. If we are to include all fragments, then there is also the Mount Pylons, jump units, the weapon system and the mounted blades." Not to my surprise, Class rep answered me first.

"There you go, the bullets only disrupts the electric signal on its point of impact. It doesn't spread to the entire TSF. That means a shot in the right leg doesn't knock out the left leg. And if you shoot them in their weapon system or their swords, well, that's just foolish."

"Another thing is that since third generation runs with OBL compared to by wire on the second generation, they can reboot their system and be combat efficient again in about seven minutes." No wonder this ammo type was never used in any warfare, I could fight bare-handed better.

"With that said, there're some advantages to using these rounds. A confirmed shot to the lower torso would disable both legs and the jump unit while a shot to the upper torso would disable both main arms and the Mount Pylon."

"Then again, confirmed on the head will fry their pilot system directly from the sensors which means headshots are a one-hit-kill." That update brought Tama some encouragement.

"All in all, aim for center mass with these rounds and it should provide effective enough for our mission. Also these rounds create a smaller muzzle flash when fired, so they're nice for stealth situations, although I can't think of this mission as being a sneaky one."

"Next we'll discuss the operation date and plan. Go ahead, Takamura." I was the one who moved for Takamura to take her rightful duty of detailing our op.

"Operation Reclaimer will commence at 2100 hours on December 20, 2015. Archangel Squadron will load up on four An-225 Mriya for take-off, it will be two TSFs per re-entry shuttle." The visual representation of our ride appeared next.

"These shuttles are designed for fast exits with slidable plates, your TSF should be pulled out as soon as you disengage the harness locks." When nobody said anything else, she took that as a sign of understanding and continued.

"On arrival in the airspace of Supply Base Ц-04 at 0100 hours, the Archangel Squadron will airdrop down to ground level and secure the HVTs with their TSFs." Next, we saw an aerial map of the supply base taken from a satellite.

"It should be noted that we do not have any information on the exact position of the HVTs, but it is assumed for there to be no reinforcements on site. After confirming the safety of your prisoners, the squad will move to secure the northeast LZ for a pickup that will transport the prisoners to Yokohama."

With some more mouse clicks, the image zoomed in on a piece of airstrip. It was legitimately surprising that this landing zone wasn't destroyed completely like the rest of the base was.

"Archangel Squadron is to then take over control of the two TSFs and extract to Avacha Bay where you will rendezvous with the 11th Fleet from Yokosuka Base and be shipped home at 0130 hours. The entire operation should take no longer than thirty minutes from incursion to exfiltration." That was a great mission plan on paper, just like every other plan we ever had.

"For your team's weaponry, half of the 36mm magazines will be switched out for 36mm EMR. It is advised that your usage of the Melee Halberd or the 120 mm should be with caution, as the mission's completion relies on the safety of both the HVTs and the TSFs."

"Your team will be given suppressed H&K MP7s in case of infantry combat. Same as before, the usage of the firearms should be met with caution." Takamura really tried to hammer home the point that she didn't want us to put a bullet between anyone's eyes.

"So any questions, girls?" I spoke up to finish off our briefing.

"I am afraid none of my inquiries will be answered here, tactlessly. This is a classified operation, correct?"

"Meiya's got the right idea, none of you will be told anything unless we decide it's required for you to know." The way of the military brought down some of my crew's mood, so there was only silence afterwards.

"Alright then, that's pretty much it. All of our training from now on will be adapted with this operation in mind. You're all dismissed for the morning, gather in the simulation room by 1300 hours. Now get out of here." With a demanding hand wave, I set the girls free until for lunch.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Hallways**

"So this is the closure you sought for yourself." A deliberate voice made a statement around the corner ahead of Yui.

"Mitsurugi-sama… good morning." When Yui rounded the upcoming intersection, the heir to the Koubuin bloodline leaned against the wall as Yui took her formulated bow.

"Answer me, Takamura." The royalty before her had no intention to be distracted by a greeting.

"…Yes, this is all I am capable of doing." Yui understood plainly how powerless she was as of now, she knew it painfully so.

"I see. Then it is not my place to pass judgement upon you."

"I… apologize for my weakness." When she avoided the gaze in shame and sorrow, Mitsurugi slightly patted her soft hair in a rhythmic fashion like a caring mother would.

"Now, now. You have done nothing to feel such indignity. In fact, if one were to view the decision you made in another light; it could be said that what you chose was more laborious of the two."

Unexpected was Mitsurugi's consolation. As if the words she perceived were voiced by a magical speakerphone, Yui felt her mood lighting up instantly from the encouragement.

"Thank you very much, Mitsurugi-sama."

"You are quite welcome, Takamura. With this, your role is over. So I ask of you to place your wholehearted faith in us and Takeru, we will bring back your loved one without harm." That remark was enough to make Yui flush red.

"…Uuuu, p-please don't t-t-tease me like this, Mitsurugi-sama!" The culprit of her flustered moment laughed purely at her reaction.

"Huhuhuhu, you sure are an entertaining one, Takamura. This must be what you are like under normal circumstances." Yui briefly remembered how long ago it had been since she had last enjoyed herself to this extent.

"Come, let us speak in a more suitable location."

"Of course, Mitsurugi-sama."

—

"So yes, I'll be preparing my belongings. My flight to Yukon Base is tonight." Their long conversation crossed many topics and their freshly formed friendship thickened as a result by its end.

"Yukon, huh? I see, did you enjoy your stay at Yokohama?"

"Of course, Mitsurugi-sama. This is quite a wonderful base." With an entertained grin, Mitsurugi took a step closer to Yui.

"This is good! I pray for your safety during your flight, Takamura. I look forward to our next encounter, goodbye."

"Thank you very much, Mitsurugi-sama. Good luck on your mission, and… I understand it is not my position to ask you of this, however, please… take care of him for me." What Yui received in return was a firm nod of confidence.

"Fear not, Takamura. I have taken your request to heart."

With her head bowed low, Yui bid her farewell to a member of the Imperial who had left a great impression in her mind.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **PX**

"You all seen the mission plan, if you got any problems with it, say it." It was seriously annoying how my team all just hid their upset.

We were dining our food in the PX with a gloomy mood overshadowing the long table we sat by. Even when this was the prime time for lunch, the PX was almost devoid of any souls.

The girls surrounding me were quietly digging into their meal without as much as a murmur to display their bother, none of them appeared to want to voice their opinion on the matter of our upcoming operation.

"I just wanna ask, why are we dealing with this mess in the first place?" All save for one, Class rep finally brought up a question that no doubt was on her mind.

"This is a matter of diplomacy and a part of our deal with the US. They have things they want, we have things we want. Thus an agreement was reached." Unfortunately for our atmosphere, my explanation was not enough to distort their unhappiness.

"Give it up, Takeru. It is not unforeseen for the team to be mentally unprepared for this mission. We will be sent after other human beings once more, regardless."

Meiya's words carried undeniable truth with it. I was again thrusting my squad into a situation where their barrels will be pointed toward men with the same blood as us in their veins.

"Look… I know you all are probably not super thrilled to go on another mission like this but, it's inevitable that we have to fight others sooner or later. We're soldiers, after all."

"But why pick us? Doesn't the commander or whoever, has other teams to pick from?" Mikoto brought up a reasonable assumption.

"No, no not really. We got two specialized TSFs and eight excellent Eishis; besides, Alternative IV set up the mission, so we'll be getting something out of it." My answer was vague enough to not be considered as a lie.

When no further questions came, I became truly tired of this stalemate between the bunch under my command.

"Alright, listen up here. You girls all trust me, right?" The new subject caught them off guard which led to a second of confusion. Eventually, they all nodded one by one after some time.

"Then I want the seven of you to believe in me; I know it all sounds kinda shady and probably not what you would normally be excited to do. But will you trust your Squad leader who has yet to let you down?"

As I twiddled my thumbs in anticipation for their answer, the lights emitted from the girl's eyes were visibly starting to take a different colour.

"Of course, by Takeru's order shall I move and by Takeru's order will I strike. Even if this state does not appear honourable on the surface, it shall not deter my will to be of your support."

"Guess Mitsurugi does have a point. Sometime secrets become worthless the moment they're revealed, specially to people who don't need to know them."

"Class rep, good analogy. I agree."

"If Takeru-san leads us like he did before, then I'm sure there's nothing to worry about!"

"Besides, we're not sent to kill people at all! Just catching them and taking them back!"

"Takeru-chan, I'll always do whatever you say, you know? Of course you know that!"

"Never a doubt, Takeru-san."

"I can only do this because of you girls, thank you all… very much." Words alone were just not sufficient to fully deliver my feelings, the warm love of acceptance shined brilliantly within the hearts of these important girls of my life.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Yokohama Base, Runway B**

Yui stood under the cold, blue sky with her case of personal belongings and its carrier as her only company. Now only if the one who lugged her case had a little more integrity in his manner, her time of peace would last a bit longer.

"Oi! Takamura! Let's get your ass moving! Start boarding already." Again, if Yui could be granted one wish, she would only hope that there wasn't a highly intelligent and cynical officer of higher rank escorting her.

"Capt. Shirogane, is the professor not coming?"

"Nope, she's got stuff to work out and all. Busy person, I tell ya." Yui thought nothing of it, just because she wasn't important enough to be sent off by Professor Kouzuki didn't mean her job wasn't completed.

"I see, then please tell her she has my gratitude for her assistance."

"Yep, sure. In place of that, make sure you make us a great new TSF, got that?"

"Of course, Captain. This is my duty." With a scarce smile, Yui took over the luggage Shirogane carried for her until now.

When Yui arrived at this base, she had two missions, but only one goal. Her XFJ Program was on its last leg and the pressure from both the Ministry of Defence and the UN council was at an all-time high. With nowhere else to turn to, Yui placed her last hope in another plan by the United Nations, Alternative IV.

The director of Alternative IV was barely generous enough to accept her conditions, while placing theirs on top of her own. Their request was simple yet almost unbearable to Yui. Professor Kouzuki demanded for the location of Yuuya and the Shiranui Phase 3, something Yui risked her own life for so it could be sent away.

"So this is it then? Where're you going now?"

"I'm heading back to Yukon Base, Captain. There're preparations that need to be attended to." It was a textbook answer she gave out.

Part of Yui thought it was inevitable, she just wasn't strong enough to resist temptation, if one was to call their offer as such. While she was promised proper treatment and thorough investigation into Yuuya's defecting incident, it was still difficult for her to spill the hidden knowledge she held dear.

"…Yukon, huh? That's where all this mess started."

"…" A reply to Shirogane's statement was not found.

If both matters were weighted on a scale, her personal feelings were never going to trump her duty as a soldier. The equation was that meek, and Yui followed through with her belief until the very end. Now all she could do was just to pray, pray that whatever event will transpire on the 20th; no harm would befall the man on her heart.

"Things will work out, Takamura. Do you not trust my team on this?" It was as if Shirogane saw the emotions hidden behind her mask, Yui had to readjust her attitude before speaking.

"That's not the case, Captain. I am just conflicted… that is all."

"Look, I know we're not the best of friends or anything like that. But just believe in me, alright? We're not working for the Soviets or the Americans, we have our own agenda to keep pace with. We'll get to the bottom of this, and then we'll hand him back."

"Please, follow your own justice. I believe you will do the right thing, Capt. Shirogane."

"Hey, you trust me, right?" Shirogane earnestly asked.

"…I have placed my conviction in you… so please, don't let this event end in disaster… for me." Yui again felt a moment of susceptibility when she recalled memories of that man.

"Takamura, while your personal cause is none of my concern, I simply do not have a reason to sabotage this mission. I clearly told you what I want which is the XFJ Program, you don't have to worry at all."

"Then I shall look forward to your promise, Captain." Whether she seriously had faith in his words or not, Yui couldn't risk the chance of turning that vow into a lie.

"Safe flight, Takamura." With a handsome salute to bid her farewell, Shirogane raised his hand in pride.

"Thank you, Capt. Shirogane. We will meet again soon." And Yui returned his concealed respect with her own before embarking on the jet planned to land in Yukon.

 **kAGamI SumIKa**

 **YokOHamE bAse, UndERgRounD**

 _Oh, speak to us, child of man. What does thee seeks within our haven?!_

" _Huh? Who're you? …Where am I?_ "

 _Trivial. Now tell the motive for this visit. We are not so fair as many believes._

" _That's right…! I need power to become stronger!_ "

 _Like the many before you, we understand as always. If one truly seeks strength, then thee must understand thy origin._

" _My origin? What are you talking about?_ "

 _Come on now you sad soul, remember, remember, the cause for your behaviour._

" _Stop saying things that don't make sense! Just tell me what you want from me!_ "

 _How can corpses walk? How can the dead rise? How can the deceased be reunited? How can a soul turn back on its path through the afterlife? They must not do such act! Yet you seeks the strength to protect when thy body has since long rotted!_

" _NO! You're WRONG! I'm still alive! It's because I'm alive that I want power to protect!_ "

 _You foolish, foolish maiden evicted from the Eden! We have nothing to offer for the dead!_

" _I'M NOT DEAD! You can't call me dead when I'm RIGHT HERE!_ "

 _And what must be thereon for one to live? A body made from flesh and blood! A meat cage is what thee lacks to be human!_

" _But- BUT I do have a BODY! Takeru-chan made this for me!_ "

 _Yes, yes. Indeed a body you owns, a body of machines, that must be._

" _Why does this matter!? How am I different from a normal person!?_ "

 _Such imprudent question from this injudicious mind! How thou is different, you asked!?_

 _Khe…hehe-Kyahahahahaha! How is one to count that mechanical heart?! Those robotic limbs!? Face the truth, you existence fazed within a tube! Thy body is forged from plates and wires! Materials not of the nature!_

" _AGhrraa! Then what do I have to do get the power!?_ "

 _Acknowledge the truth, surrender thy humanity._

"… _What?_ "

 _We do not shine this light upon beings inhuman imitations! The dead cannot reap this benefit, however we never claimed thee to be deceased._

" _B-but you just called me that a second ago!_ "

 _Hah! Ridiculous! Pay no mind to such details, girl!_

" _Then you'll help me, right!?_ "

 _Of course! Understand yourself and this eminent strength of our heart shall become thy blade to wield!_

" _What do you want me to know about myself, tell me!_ "

 _Allow us to phrase it as such. Thee seeks our asset for the benefit of protection, yet it is not the protection of thyself. Then it must be the protection of another._

" _I already told you this is for Takeru-chan!_ "

 _This here, is why we cannot comprehend thy intention. Thee calls the name of this Takeru, yet we know his name is no longer above the earth._

" _Don't you dare say that about Takeru-chan! He's alive! Alive, you hear me!?_ "

 _Ahihihihi… very well. That disillusion shall soon falter under the weight of thy destiny, however it must be not our place to cloud your eyes; for neither the time nor the situation is correct._

" _If you know that then just give me Prafka! I have to become more powerful to protect Takeru-chan!_ "

 _Come, come. Be of entertainment for us a bit longer, will you? This man named Shirogane Takeru, what is thy relationship with him?_

" _He's my lover! Obviously! He's the only person in my heart!_ "

 _True, true. We can see that much. Now tell us, child. We request a demonstration of will, show us what the power of thy resolve._

" _What… do you want me to do?_ "

 _What can thee do for that man?_

"… _There's nothing I'm not willing to do._ "

 _Allow us to ask; is thee capable of abandoning the lives of others for thy man?_

" _I… I—_ "

 _You do well not attempting to deceive us, for within this realm, all that is true belongs to us. We shall question once more; is thee capable of abandoning the lives of others for thy man?_

" _I… yeah, yes I am!"_

 _Good! Let us spawn another! May it be the lives of thy blood? Your mother, perhaps?_

" _Yes, all my family died long time ago anyway!_ "

 _May it be the lives of his friends?_

" _What…?_ "

 _We will not repeat ourselves, you have understood what is asked of you._

" _His… friends?_ "

 _Thou has't heard nothing wrong._

" _Why his friends?! Isn't this about me?!_ "

 _Preciously, this topic is what you desire. So answer! What is thee willing to abandon for the sake of this power!?_

" _I already said I can give up anything important to me! But not Takeru-chan! He doesn't love only me so I can't take anything from him!_ "

 _Hurm, loyalty functions different than what thee thinks. Only when has he shown his earnestness should you entrust your fate to this man. Yet thou art hesitation-less in becoming his shield!_

" _That's because I love him! Stop trying to mess with my feelings like this!_ "

 _Then we shall ask; is thou willing to forfeit the lives of all those around that man? One must speak of only the truth from thy heart, nothing is more powerful than raw feelings of a maiden._

" _I… I c-can't do that! Takeru-chan loves everyone and I can't throw away his things!_ "

 _Persistent being, are you not?! Does thou believe love to be of infinite quantity?! How can a husband with many wives spread his love to all equally? Thus shall be impossible, for man holds favourites! Now will you not answer us!?_

" _I won't be lik-k- argg- ack!_ "

 _You foolish youngster, did we not remind thee, a lie can and cannot be tolerated at our will! Thee shall tell us the truth!_

" _I won't answer something like that! Why are you so stubborn anyway?!_ "

 _Thee replies not; thus must be afraid of the unknown consequence. Fear not, we do not base judgement on thy answer, however thy real sentiment must be heard. For your power rises from the inner heart, and exposing that feeling is both of entertainment for us and a source of will for you!_

"AGGRAA! _FINE! I'll say it! I'm fine if all the others just DISAPPEAR!_ "

 _Hehihihi, Kikikikiki! Just as we concerned! Thee is capable of abandoning all lives not belonging to thy lover! Indeed an entertaining being of this earth! How have you reached such horrible deduction, do tell, do tell!_

" _I'm not your clown here! I answered your question so just stop this!_ "

 _That will not do, stranded soul of this earth! Enlighten us and we shall deliver! Why can thou be the worker of such cruel statements is a bother to us, now speak! Speak and be granted the potential!_

" _ARRGGA!_ "

 _Hurry now, child of man. We are not being known for our immense patience!_

" _I can't just say it! It's my secret!_ "

 _Then our secret shall it become. Worry not, mortal. Thy sealed faith shall not challenge its status for all of eternity, our word is given as such. However, if thou does not speak, then your previous time will forever be wasted._

"…"

 _Choose now as a second of infinity is longer than thy life._

" _Fine, FINE! I'll tell you!_ "

"— _it's because Takeru-chan is such an IDIOT! What world saviour!? What protecting everybody!? Isn't obvious that kind of dream is totally IMPOSSIBLE in our time!? How can he say such dumb stuff and not feel embarrassed!? Hgaa! It's useless, all USELESS!_ "

" _How many times have we give up on a successful loop because some dumb girl who can't pilot a TSF properly died!? I was fine with Takeru-chan not going back to his own world, I was even fine with him trying to save everyone that was important during his first time!_ "

" _BUT how many girls does he want to fall in love with before he's SATISFIED?! It's completely ridiculous to save all those people without anyone dying! That's why we're still stuck in this goddamn hell! Like the last freaking time! We HAD the Primary Objective! It was right there and Takeru-chan just had to go back once more!_ "

 _Such upset, such anger! Continue, continue!_

" _And you know what's worse!? I can't even complaint about any of this! Because I'm so nice of a girlfriend that I'm fine with him ACTIVELY going for other girls! I said okay to that because I really am! But saving all those extras from dying in a world with less than a billion people is completely INSANE!_ "

" _Takeru-chan doesn't even know what I have to go through! Every time he dies he can just hop out of bed with a few coughs and be good to go, but it's so DIFFERENT FOR ME! The world just breaks down and sends me ALL THE WAY BACK to when the G-Bombs go off, when I was still in that TUBE!_ "

" _That's at least THREE YEARS of endless SUFFERING! And during that time the memories, they all come back! I keep remembering the BETA! Their hands, fingers, tongues. T-their tentacles- and the worms! EVERYDAY! They kept toying with me like their plaything! AAAAAGGA IT HURTS SO, SO MUCH!_ "

 _You poor, poor, miserable soul. Forever tainted not by thy own will! With a man who does not, wish not and want not understand thy anguish!_

"A _ll I ever wanted is to just live happily with Takeru-chan! I don't care about the others! Meiya-san, Miki-san, Kei-san, Chizuru-san, Mikoto-san, all the Valkyries girls and even Kasumi-chan. I DON'T CARE, I DON'T CARE I JUST DON'T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THEM!_ "

" _We can share Takeru-chan, NO PROBLEM! They can show their affection, NO PROBLEM! I won't even fight with them if they want to shower him in love or whatever! But why can't they just LIVE! Why is it so hard to not die!? I DON'T GET IT!_ "

" _I don't want to keep looping ANYMORE! THE PAIN IS JUST TOO MUCH! Why do we have to go back every time some stupid bitc— ARRGGA! If only I can just make them all DISAPPEAR!_ "

 _Hehehehehe, KYAHAHAHAHA! Yes! This is the raging flame of envy, the burning blaze of love! Just as we foreseen, thee is of the most wonderful entertainment!_

" _I JUST WANT EVERYONE TO STOP DYING! So give me that Prafka and I can save everyone's dumbasses from making me go through anymore of this hell!_ "

 _Yahahahaha! Yes, yes! One final question and thee—_

" _I'M SICK OF THIS CRAP ALREADY! I don't GIVE A SHIT about your questions! Hurry up and give me my power so I don't have to listen to your annoying voice A SECOND LONGER!_ "

 _Very well! Us shall grant thy wish of a stray child! UNDERSTAND! there is no greater HONOUR and DISGRACE for surrendering one's HUMANITY!_

" _Haaa… haa… I-I don't care, you can have that too._ "

 _Exactly, being wavering between this world and the next! From this moment onwards: thee shall aim with thy eye and miss; thee shall shoot with thy mind and miss. Yet thou shall kill with thy heart! Thou shall only kill with thy heart!_

" _Is this all you want to say?_ "

 _Inpatient, no?! Good! Now by our contract shall allow us to grant thee a new name!_

 _kAGaMi SumiKA! Thee shall be the one and only hot-headed, hot-hearted, hot-blooded cruel guardian of your mirror! The ageless, baseless, witless, lifeless world of hell awaits thy blazing fire of love!_

 _So scorch thy sorrow fate, thy unending path, scorch every single darkness of this planet and let no creature stand between you and your bright future! Let thy LIGHT BURN all lives who OPPOSE thy WILL! Long live the keeper of the saviour!_

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Yokohama Base, G-42 floor**

A motionless girl submerged deep in water was asleep within a shut capsule, the transparent oxygenated H2O kept her hair adrift freely as it flowed in all directions around her body.

Kouzuki studied the readings of Kagami off the control panel in ease; her heart rate, CPU temperature, blood pressure, coolant filtration were all within acceptable fluctuation. Being a living breathing robot demanded much requisite maintenance.

A LED flashed red twice together with two short beeps notified Kouzuki of the completed procedure of Prafka integration for Kagami, the first of numerous parts, that was.

Without a reason to delay, Kouzuki danced her finger across a few more buttons on the control panel to empty out the water and disconnect the cords. Finally, Kagami woke up after a long nap and hacked a few times as a greeting to fresh air.

"So, how is it? Feeling anything different?" A rare display of kindness took place when Kouzuki was nice enough to pass a towel for the girl who just climbed out of her pod.

"It's over, we can move onto training now." Announced Kagami as she pulled out the wires connected to the back of her neck.

The 00 unit impassively accepted the towel held by the Professor and wiped herself dry before shutting the cover for the plugs all over her body.

Two on each of her arms, legs and stomach. Multiple inputs by the nape going down her back to just above the chest. Along with markings covering her entire body for indicating dissection points; now was one of the few times when Kagami's true nature became apparent.

"Wait… what is?" Kouzuki took a few seconds to react.

"The procedure, sensei. Prafka has been integrated."

"Huh? That's not possible. I'm sorry to remind you this but you're not human, we need to run your system through a lot more emulations of Kagami Sumika so Prafka can be applied to the human side of your processor."

"Kouzuki-sensei, I'll say this again. I am Kagami Sumika. You can test me to see the results yourself." In doubt, Kouzuki eyed Kagami up and down, hoping for a better understanding as to the sudden change in personality.

"Well, guess we'll do just that. Yashiro's session is not yet done so we should have enough time." Kagami darted her cold gaze to the sealed pod behind her, not a sign of emotion could be seen above her features.

—

"I… impossible! Give me some time to revaluate my life, be right back with you, Kagami."

"Please don't waste any more time than necessary, sensei."

Experiencing an emotion that only could be described as a mixture of confusion and apprehension, Kouzuki concentrated on the many flashing monitors before her, leaving Kagami lightly bounded to a surgery table with more but different cables linked to her body.

"This shouldn't be happening, it's way too fast for the incorporation of Prafka. Even with familiarity on the subconscious level, it'll still take Yashiro three more hours until she's ready. How did you finish this fast?"

"I made a contract, Kouzuki-sensei." That took the vice-commander's attention off the report and made her gawk at Kagami in disbelief.

"What're you even talking about?"

"No, it'll never matter again. So am I good to go or not?"

"Not up for a conversation? Whatever, I'm no professional on this as well. Honestly all this esper ability thing is outside my area of expertise. If you say you're fine and the tests say you're fine, as much as I'm concerned here you're fine." Groaned Kouzuki as she explained.

"Then can we move on now?"

"Be a bit patient, Yashiro needs to be with you for Prafka to work."

—

Three uneventful hours were killed with Kouzuki preparing the next stage for the pair's exercise into Prafka and Kagami staring lifelessly ahead into the void. Finally, a beacon of hope beeped twice to signal the end of Yashiro's assimilation with Prafka.

"Here, wipe yourself down." Similar to her treatment of Kagami, Kouzuki tossed the naked Yashiro an identical piece of cloth.

"Thank you, professor." Yashiro sponged herself dry quickly and slipped on her rabbit ear limiter once again.

"Do you not need yours, Sumika-san?"

"Uh-uh, I'm fine as is." If the Russian girl was unsure to Sumika's logic, she didn't let it show.

"So you two good then?" For her question, Kouzuki received two nods in revenue.

"Perfect. Now we can test your synchronization with each other and the stability level during activation. You two know what I'm talking about?" The silence of the room added to the awkward situation.

"Hehe, you two really hopped head in without even finding out what we're doing, didn't you? I'm speechless at your bravery, or foolishness, depending on the viewer." Still, no reply.

"Alright, so simply we'll categorize the effect by a percentage ratio based on how much in sync you two are. Not sure how the Russians mark theirs but here it'll be between level one and ten, with one being the weakest link and ten being the strongest."

"However getting into Prafka isn't just by a click of a button, mostly a catalyst is used to get the esper into the correct mindset. The catalyst can be an item, person, belief or any other subjects. Although I'm sure I know what you two will pick. For now we'll use medicine to induce your activation but finding an actual catalyst is what is wise."

"So are we good? I won't know what'll happen after this." It may have appeared that Kouzuki had grasped a flawless understanding behind the Prafka effect, but in reality, she was just reading off translated reports.

"No problem."

"Let's go."

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **Kagami's room**

"What's wrong, Sumika-san? You been down since we get out of the pods."

"…Haa? Ah, have I been like that? Sorry, Kasumi-chan."

A thick mist vaporized from warm bath water enveloped the washroom; its temperature was neither too hot nor too cold, pitch perfect for the two espers who recently came back from hours upon hours of training.

Sumika perched comfortably with her back against the tub wall and her legs spread to either side, between her limbs sat Kasumi who was in a similar posture barring for she leaned on Sumika's chest. The two girls were sharing a bath to wash away their fatigue during a quiet night.

"Are you in a bad mood?"

"Who knows? I'm not too sure myself." Sumika lacked her usual cheerfulness when she responded to Kasumi's back.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Not really, no. Even I don't understand what happened to me." While what Sumika acknowledged was useless in recovering her character, maybe it was a sign for Kasumi not to give up.

"Please tell me what happened."

"…There's no way I can say."

"Is it something bad?"

"…Yeah, I'm the worst. I'm really a terrible person…"

In the dim-lit bathroom, Kasumi felt Sumika's adorable face pressing to the rear of her head. Even though her hair was tied up to a bun after their earlier shower , Kasumi still discerned a distinct form of liquid being combined with the water.

"Sumika-san, if it's hurting you, please tell me."

"There's no way… I can let anyone else know about this…"

"Please don't say that, we're all your friends." As if those words contained a hidden knife, Sumika flinched violently when she heard what should be a line of consolation.

"I know… everyone… treats me so well, like real friends… and I… act like a total jerk."

"That's not true, Sumika-san is very nice to everyone as well."

"Kasumi-chan… please don't try and comfort me anymore!"

"I can't do that, if you're feeling down I'll leave you alone. But if you are doubting yourself, I have to keep telling you until you know." Whether Kasumi knew her kindness would further upset Sumika or not, she still claimed with a doubtless tone.

"You don't know anything! YOU don't know what kind of PERSON I AM!" Unable to suppress her anger, Sumika shouted vicious at her best friend.

"Then please tell me!" Kasumi too raised her voice to compete, even by a little.

"I… no! You'll hate me if I tell you!"

"I promise, Sumika-san. I will never ever hate you." Kasumi's declaration went unanswered for a period of time.

"…Really? You really won't think of me badly?" In the most timid voice yet, Sumika at last wavered about her former choice.

"Never."

"Then… close your eyes, Kasumi-chan. I'll show you exactly what happened."

—

Vivid reality, yet it was an obscure dream at the same time. Yes, that was what Kasumi saw. A dream, a nightmare forged to expose the ugliness of human nature. So of course, she understood clearly that wasn't who Sumika was. Her best and first friend was a caring, loving nice and openhearted person. Nothing will change that truth, not for Kasumi, not for anyone.

"See? I'm just the worst." For a while, Kasumi couldn't think of anything that will satisfy Sumika for an answer.

"That person, it had a weird accent."

"Huh…? Ah, ahahaha. Guess you're right, it really don't know how to speak proper… whatever language that was." In Sumika's dream, the voice was intelligent, but also not of any language known to man.

"It felt like they were trying really hard to sound smart, but they don't know how to speak like Meiya-san."

"Hehehe, it really did." The two girls shared a quick laughter of mockery followed by another moment of painful tranquility.

"Do you think that voice can be—"

"—STOP Already! Stop avoiding the real topic!" When Kasumi attempted another icebreaker, she was mercilessly shot down in rage.

"You're right. I'm sorry, Sumika-san."

"So at least blame me for my selfishness! Say that I'm DISGUSTING!"

"But Sumika-san, you're not—"

"STOP IT! STOP LYING!"

Covering her vulnerability with a violent fit of rage, Sumika gripped tightly around Kasumi's tiny body and forcefully squeezed her. The 00 unit whose physique was many times that of a common man failed to control her strength during her blind outburst.

Like the embrace of a reaper, Kasumi was strangled by the pair of hands that started off as an innocent hug. The pain of her ribcage and the suffocation of her lungs intensified the uncalled hostility which Kasumi noticed too late.

"Just say how terrible of a person I AM! Say the truth!"

"Ahga— ack— I— Su-mi-ka-san—"

"Why ARE YOU PITYING ME like this!? I don't deserve anything!"

The agonizing burn of her chest interrupted every word that tried to escape Kasumi's throat. Bit by bit, the colour of her face paled down to a disturbing white as her life was on the decrease.

Time slowly became hazy for the rabbit girl, her neck was now pinned resentfully by her deranged friend. The fingers that choked her from behind were pressing, scratching and nipping Kasumi's skin did not touch her with their usual kindness.

"I HATE IT! I hate this feeling of mine! I HATE MYSELF SO MUCH!"

"Haa-awwk— gaak— Su-Su— Mika— san—"

"WHY do I have to BE THIS WAY!? WHY is there so much SUFFERING!?"

A collection of seconds eventually turned into a minute once it reached sixty. Kasumi's mind fogged white and she was losing her intelligence as her body was denied air over and over. However, during what could be her last moment, she was still responsive enough to understand the only priority of this situation.

She had to do something; if not for herself, for her best friend.

"I— am very— accak— jeal-ous— of you— Sumi-ka-san—"

"Eh?"

Fortunately, the smothering hands released her from its deadly hold just in time for Kasumi to get off with an inch of her life.

"Ack! Acgak! Haaa… haaaaa. Huuuuuaa."

"…Oh god…!" The end of one crisis was immediately followed by another. As Sumika fathomed her completely meaningless act of attempted murder, her emotions were jumbled further into a total mess.

"Ahhhaaa! Ka-Ka-Kasumi-chan! I-I-I'm SO, SO SORRY!"

"Haaaaa… it's okay, Sumika-san." Kasumi rotated around in the tub and came face to face with a Sumika whose expression was of pure horror and guilt.

"B-b-b-bu-but! I was about to kill you! I ALMOST KILLED YOU!" She screamed in miserable shock and remorse for further betraying the girl before her.

The light was lacking from the loving eyes of Sumika and her old affectionate smile was ruined by the overwhelming heartache.

"—oh my god! What have I done!? There's still red mark around your neck—"

Continuation of her anguish was suddenly halted forever by a straight slap across her tear-covered face. The smack resonated within their small room while Sumika was still dumbfounded, unable to act.

"Kasumi-chan—"

Her second struggle at speaking was also cut off when Kasumi cupped her cheeks strenuously and pulled her face in close for a deep kiss.

"—Muunun…"

At first Sumika was instinctively reluctant about the seemingly random French kiss she received from Kasumi of all people, however after the initial shock died down, she nimbly returned the tonguing. The passionate make-out session between the two girls lasted for more than twenty seconds until Sumika ran out of breath to sustain.

"Haaaa… haaaaaa. Kasumi-chan, why?" Finally released, both girls took some time to readjust their breathing.

The abrupt physical intimacy given raise to their natural reaction in the bodies Sumika and Kasumi. Their hot faces flustered red and their bodies heated up in anticipation for further skinship which unfortunately will be left undelivered.

"I'm bisexual."

When Sumika widened her mouth to inhale back the air she lost, the bombshell prevented her from closing it again.

"…EEEHHHHH?! REALLLLLLLY?!"

"I don't know, but it's probably true." Unknown to Sumika, who just had her world turned upside down and flipped like a professional cook's pancake, the earlier troubling mood was long gone.

"H-h-how— did you always swing that way, Kasumi-chan?!"

"I don't think so. Do you remember how Takeru-san kept making us do those lesbian plays?" The reminder to their controversial night activities brought a crimson blush to Sumika's features.

"…Well, yeah, but how did that turn you out… you know, this way?!"

"I'm not sure, but I remembered it being very fun. Everyone tasted very good."

"Awawa… awawawawawaaaaa! Kaaassuuuumiii-channnnnn~!" Unsure about the proper action to take during this sudden turn of events, Sumika spun her head all around in case of additional confusion and embarrassment.

"How're you feeling now, Sumika-san?"

"Awa…awawawaa— ah, oh, right. I'm… really sorry about that breakdown, Kasumi-chan, please… forgive me."

"Okay." Kasumi's diversion worked flawlessly in bringing back the good old Sumika.

"And… please forgive me for my selfishness. I'll try and change myself, any way possible." Since they returned back to the original topic, Sumika again felt regret for her mistake.

"There's no need, Sumika-san. I'm the same."

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"Remember how I said I'm jealous of you? That is the truth." Sumika probably wished to say something seen as her mouth opened a slight crack, but she closed it just as quickly.

"Many mornings I go and wake up Takeru-san, often there will be another girl in bed with him. Every time that happens it really annoyed me to no end."

"No! That's different! I wanted to kill our friends for myself! That's way different than just be upset about someone in his bed!"

"You didn't want to kill anyone, that would be counterproductive. You wanted for them to disappear, Sumika-san. And sometimes I wanted the others to disappear too."

"No, no! It's still too different!"

"Please trust me, Sumika-san. I know exactly how you feel. I don't have many emotions, but I'm sure what I experience is envy; this spite towards others burns deep in my heart as well."

Unexplainable emotions engulfed Sumika's thoughts. She always believed for herself to be the only twisted member of Takeru's team, she was the only one unfitting to stand by his side. Yet as it turned out, someone else shared her dark sentiments and was willing to voice hers for the comfort of Sumika.

"I know what it's like. We have these bad fantasies and ideas in our heads; what if Takeru-san only looked at me; what if there's nobody else fighting over him with me—"

"—if only… I can have him for myself…" While hesitant, Sumika finished the last sentence in Kasumi's tread. Both girls were lastly on the same page about their darkness.

"That's right. I think it's because we love him so much that the jealousy of seeing others beside him eventually blackens our hearts. Not only that, the constant failure and repeat of timelines made us insensitive to a normal person's behaviour."

"I… I only wanted to stop the pain…!" A few more drops of tears accompanied another confession.

"Me too, it's really painful to have to restart and have the previous effort wasted."

"I said all those nice stuff about everyone sharing his love… and yet I'm the one who wanted to keep it for herself the most. How terrible can I be?" With that, Sumika covered her pitiful face using both hands that almost stole her best friend from her moments ago.

"Is there no way to go back to those peaceful days?" It was a question filled with sadness and despair of their world, perhaps some were right to call it hopeless.

"I don't know, but if there's a chance, I'll never let it go."

"Me too, as long as Takeru-chan can be happy, I'm willing to do anything." A newly found resolve made from the corrupted rationale of madness fitted their doomed view more than any other.

"Sumika-san, I think that one day; I'll kill you, forever." It was not the literal meaning of her sentence that alarmed Sumika; it was the hidden suggestion which she understood.

"Ah… same here. If there ever is a chance, I'll kill you for Takeru-chan."

It was not murder of the physical sense they talked about; it was the killing of their souls both girls agreed to commit.

"If we ever reach a future without you, Sumika-san. I won't go back for you. And it's not only you either; Meiya-san, Kei-san, Mikoto-san, Chizuru-san and anyone else, I'll abandon them if it means I can finally end this suffering."

"Me too. Whenever you don't make it to the end, I'll leave you or anybody behind… and be happy by myself with Takeru-chan."

Hearing each other's admission led to a mutual laugh of revulsion and loathing for themselves.

"We really are the worst."

"Hahaha, too true."

 **Author's note**

I think I'm just dragging this one on now. Like good parts are coming, sometime down the line but we're still not there yet. Sooooooon.

Not much to talk about here, go do all that ego boosting things for me by subscribing and whatever. Oh, also thanks for reading and I don't own anything.

Funny story, for the last update I got 199 views in that day. That alone makes me wanna cry, 199! Like really!? RNG isn't blessing me enough. (I know I sound like an asshole to you guys, however I am genuinely thankful for all you people who care about this little story of mine. Cheers.)

BETA done by chad001. You know, the guy told me to make many changes during the dream part; I did like two of them. I first wanted to write that part in classical Shakespearean English but I wasn't willing to put that much effort into studying it. And besides, none of you will probably understand it anyway.

I mean, who actually read Hamlet the first time and knew exactly what they were talking about? English is just too strong, I'm telling you.


	26. Prelude on behalf of the moon

**Sharon Heim**

 **December 18, 2001**

 **Alaska, Yukon Base, United States Army Sector**

"—good, good! Just bring that end over! Watch the booster fins!" Shouts from their mechanics ringed out in all directions behind Sharon, the four Raptors that served her and her unit loyally were being loaded into their temporary hanger just like last time.

"God, it was freaking cold here during September, and now this? I can't believe the people here don't just hibernate through winter." Behind her was her current partner, Leon Kuze. He walked slowly over the thick layer of snow that buried every single piece of land as far as the eyes could see.

"Yeah, I miss Nellis too. Sunbathing in October sure was fun, but out here… hrr." Making a strange noise that she herself didn't understand, Sharon mockingly shivered to juggle her two masses that were covered by her winter flight suit.

She knew her tease was effective when Leon avoided his sight while hiding his embarrassment. Shooting her a shy glare, Leon got in the passenger seat of their jeep as Sharon stepped down on the gas paddle.

That R&R session they had back in Nevada was one of a kind. A full week, the Infinites were free to do whatever they fancied; within limitation, of course, but that was still an exotic break compared to their daily training. Especially that one time when she showed off her magnificent bikini in front of the other males in her team during a swim.

Now nor the team leader Keith, or Guylos, Infinity 3, would admit this, but as long as they were men, there was no way her amazing figure didn't satisfy their vision. Nonetheless, the luckiest one of them all was still Leon, for he got to see what laid beneath her killer bikini, thoroughly, at night after the outing.

"Haaa… this damn place again. Why are we back again?" Leon stared out at the open field with a hint of reminiscence in his eyes, the days they left behind, the days of a friendship that overcame hostility and hatred.

"Can't help it, you know that. Where the Pentagon points, we go. And this time they happened to sell us out to The Company's successor."

"And it's in three days, we only got half a week for packing." Leon sounded a little upset, he didn't enjoy how he wasn't on top of all this mess.

"We don't get to choose these kinda things. Besides, it's natural that he would be wanted for that. There's also the Chinese, the Russians and obviously the Japanese who are all after him." A snort from Leon told Sharon to keep herself quite after that.

Sharon wasn't too involved in politics as her enlistment oath demanded her of this much, however a keen nose wasn't required to pick up the fishy smell of their mission.

The Infinites were ordered to intercept and capture a rogue test pilot in Russia that had stolen the Shiranui Second, it was an easy mission on paper, but that was all it was. They were told nothing else and were only given a date, December 21.

"I don't like it, we know nothing about the situation."

"That's part of the job, right?"

"Keeping us in the dark is fine, but this? Unacceptable. And Yuuya, they must know about who he is and who we are. All they do is stamp this crap classified so it can be passed down to us, there's no way I'm gonna just act like their toy." Leon said that, but even he must know the chance of a reunion was almost impossible.

"Yuuya must have had his reasons… he's not a person to just abandon his duties." The old Leon would be quite upset with Sharon taking Yuuya's side once again, so it was fortunate he had grown a good amount since the last time they visited Alaska.

Leon changed, for the better too after the Yukon Base incident. He eventually accepted the past and released the burden that tied him to that fateful accident, he even joked about taking Yuuya as his wingman if they ever flew together again.

However, just like all disasters, they strike when the people are least prepared. The news of Yuuya's desertion and betrayal shocked Leon immensely, he couldn't believe how a man he deemed trustworthy could turn his back on everything he fought to protect so far. It was intolerable, it was unforgivable.

"They said he turned, he's not part of us anymore. So that make things much easier, either he got a damn good basis for going away or as his friend, I'm gonna bring him down."

Leon declared his intention so devotedly that even Sharon got a bit nervous; for it wasn't loathing or detestation Leon showed, it was a pure will of determination to correct the evil.

"Don't worry, we'll find Yuuya and the truth… together."

"Right, he owes us at least this much."

 **Cui Yifei**

 **Alaska, Yukon Base, People's Liberation Army Sector**

"Ane-san, the J-10s just got loaded in the hanger."

"Hào, tell the mechanics they have my thanks." Yifei was resting on a sofa in her room as Wang, one of her three subordinate gave her a quick update.

"So we're back at Yukon again, Ae? One month and a half and suddenly everything got so coold."

"Yeah… no joke." Yifei was nowhere near happy when chitchatting with Wang.

"How's Commander Wu? Any updates?"

"Mēi, nothing significant yet. He's still recovering."

"Arrgga! To be getting the flu at a time like this! You're kidding me!" Displaying her vexation by slamming the armrests, Yifei pushed back her hair with a swipe of her hand.

It was an exceptionally unpleasant week for Yifei. First, she was told that her husband, Yuuya Bridges had somehow deserted his duty as a test pilot and instead ran off with some Russian girls that she barely met.

Second, she was told that a week after he left Yukon. And third, two days ago her team was ordered back to Yukon from Taiwan just so they can kill some time there and await further orders.

This should had been Captain Wu's job. Unfortunately, he came down with a cold and Yifei was given a temporary rise to Captain in his place.

"Ane-san, you alright? Your face doesn't look too good."

"Of course I'm not alright. He could at least filed for divorce before he cheated on me!" With another frustrated slam on the armrest, Yifei yelled out her inner thoughts.

"Would you have accepted it?"

"Obviously not! I would have dragged that stupid idiot in my room and— and…" Her sentence ended abruptly when the Taiwanese girl couldn't finish that idea.

"Huhuhu, you might very well get your chance soon."

"Yeah, I'll get him this time. And I'll definitely find out just exactly what is happening."

Yifei's final order that she received earlier today, before she forgot; was to head for Russia and acquire the Shiranui Second model that Yuuya took in three days. And she fully intent on capturing every piece of that machine, including its pilot.

 **Stella Bremer**

 **Alaska, Yukon Base, United Nation Army Sector**

"So exactly what is wrong with dropping the soap?" Asked Tarisa in the shower stall next to Stella when she bent down to grab hers off the floor.

"Dunno, I think it's a guy's thing. I dropped it plenty of times and just picked it right up." Instead of washing herself with a piece of soap, however; Stella was cleaning out her hair using its more advanced counterpart, the shampoo.

"Yeah, it really is a guy thing. You ladies just won't ever get it."

"…"

"…" There was an awkward period of absolute silence following the claim of a third voice.

"…What. The. Fuck. Are you. DOING HERE, VG!?"

"Aha… ahaha." Stella remained quite other than letting out a few uncomfortable laughs.

"Oh, don't mind me. Just showering, this is co-ed shower, right?"

"NOT IF WE'RE IN HERE, YOU PASTA FUCKER!" Tarisa screamed at the top of her lungs before almost throwing out VG again in rage.

"Heeey, c'moooon. This will be the last time I can wash myself in at least two weeks, you know? Please let me stay?" Surprising everyone including herself, Tarisa stopped her attempt in booting VG and returned to her stall.

"ARGAaa! Fucking fine! This once, okay!? I'll let you stay!"

"Ara, ara. That's very nice of you, Tarisa. I'm sure VG is also grateful being able to share a shower with us, right?" Nodding his head eagerly, VG peeked over the cover for a sweet view before getting headshotted by a bucket.

 **Yukon Base, Polestar restaurant**

"Here, let's go sit over there." The Argos Flight walked into Polestar with the happy Nepalese in the lead followed by the relaxed Italian, and finally in the rear was the Swedish beauty.

So they sat down one by one, in their favourite table meant for four. Tarisa was next to VG and Stella was on her own across from them. A new waiter, a waiter that wasn't Natalie took their orders and left promptly to prepare their meal.

The diner was completely empty other than the three surface pilots. Argos Flight missed the prime time for lunch and received a private restaurant in return. But being there at 3 O'clock wasn't the only reason they got a vacant place to eat, the recent events at Yukon really caused people to seriously reconsider where they would like to spend their free time.

—

"So this is it then? This is our final supper?"

"Haa… yeah, it really is." Stella answered Tarisa with a scarce moody attitude, even she was prone to depression when powerless.

"Well, can't help what we can't do anything about." Added VG, he too was unhappy about how everything developed.

Before them laid a couple of cheap dishes and three cups of wine, it wasn't that tasty but it was the best this diner could afford as of now.

"Alright… now that we reached here, now that our duty is about to end; I'm really glad to have had the chance to be with all of you." After mentally deciding for a moment, Stella raised her cup first and spoke her heart-felt words.

"We really went through a lot, we did so much together with everyone, with Yuuya." Tarisa was second, she tipped her toes so the cup in her small hands could be kept at the same height as Stella's.

"And now everyone has to pick their own road, huh. I tell ya all, I'll really miss this time we spent." Lastly was VG, he smiled casually and lifted his wine high with the rest.

"To Argos!" A unison sound of three cups clicking together was heard, the surface fighters of the just now retired Argos Test Flight enjoyed their final drink as part of the PROMINENCE Project.

—

"Finally over… what do you all think will happen to this project now?" Tarisa snuffed her nose and asked the other two without letting her sadness leak out.

"Who knows? Hopefully Yui-Hime can get enough support from whatever Japanese organization she was going to and have her program back up and running, don't know how long till that happens though." VG shrugged his shoulder and drunk another cup of alcohol.

"Yeah… that will be good, maybe there's still hope for the 94 Second." Stella followed up on the conversation with a fake cheerful appearance.

"—Hope, huh? I did find something like that, however its price was high." Then a voice from nowhere interrupted their talk, a voice that belonged to none other than the Japanese Royal Guard.

"Ta… Ta… 1st Lt. Takamura!" Acting completely out of her personality, Tarisa rushed Takamura and hugged her tightly.

"Arr—" The newcomer was instantly taken aback by the Nepalese girl who jumped into her chest, Takamura patted her back as well after blushing a little red.

"It's good to be back, 2nd Lt. Manandal."

"Welcome home, 1st Lt. Takamura."

"We missed you when you left, First Lieutenant."

"Thank you, 2nd Lt. Bremer, 2nd Lt. Giacosa. I'm grateful for your kind greetings." Flashing a warm smile the trio of test pilots never witnessed prior, a friendly and kind Takamura sat down in the fourth seat.

"How was your trip to Japan?"

"Oh, right! Was it fun? Did anything happen?"

"You said you found a hope, right? What happened?" Temporary overwhelmed by her team's questions, Takamura leaned back in her seat and recalled her journey.

"Japan… it was… quite an unusual trip, I found some unusual allies… and a chance to meet Yuuya in the near future…"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Japan, Yokohama Base, Simulation Chamber**

"GG, GG! You came and you got some, m8!" I climbed out of my pod and met up with the rest of my crew.

"You cut me, Mitsurugi… I can't believe you did that." Ayamine was already complaining up a storm.

"I find it ironic for you to be the one who complains, considering the fact that you attempted to— urmm… 'team kill' was it?"

"I'm dead now… you hurt my feelings, Mitsurugi." I left those two alone in their playful argument.

For today's practice, we got familiar with the new EMP rounds that will be implemented for our next operation coming up soon. It was a 4v4 with one of each Element on either side, what resulted was one of the most even matches I've ever had the pleasure of participating in.

It was to my surprise that the Elements were so balanced, no one was a dead weight during our game and their team only won because terrain advantage.

"How was it, Sumika? You like the new rounds?"

"They're soooo slooow! I can throw a can faster than that!" I somehow wasn't doubtful about the truth behind Sumika's physical strength.

"Yeah, they're bad, like really bad. I can't believe I actually hit someone with those." Said Class rep, she shook her head in disappointment.

"Indeed, the anticipation required is quite troublesome, to be honest. I have lead my targets for a fair distance before firing." Meiya joined in our conversation.

"Yep, yep. How about you, Tama? Having difficulties?"

"Huh? Aah, no, not really. I can hit the shots consecutively without many issues." As expected of our team sniper.

"Really now, Tamase? Guess I was right in making you Rush Guard then."

"Ahehe, thanks, Takeru-san!" I gave Tama a comfy head-pat for her effort.

"That's so amazing, Miki-san! Good job, good job!"

"Ahhhaa, although I did get a lot of help. My bullets are specially tuned for long-range shooting and go pretty fast and can hit people faster!"

My team's increase in skill could not be denied following the 12/5 incident. They were good, very good indeed. I wasn't a hundred percent sure whether this was solely due to my teaching or the help from me being a causality conductor and all that, although it was most likely the latter.

"Alright then, let's go grab some dinner and hang out." I mentioned for our team to head for the PX.

"Ah, me and Kasumi-chan have something else to do, we'll be going to the Professor's office now."

"Hey, shouldn't it be 'Kasumi-chan and I?" I was kind enough to point out a grammer error to Sumika.

"Haa? What're you even talking about, Takeru-chan? And who cares anyway?"

"Oh… so nobody cares? I see." What a weird topic to bring up in the first place.

"Please eat dinner without us." They were shot many confused looks from everyone else.

"You two? What does Yuuko-sensei want with the two of you?" I sensed some nods behind me that seconded my question.

"It's classified, Takeru-chan! Haha, we can say that too now!"

"It's great, Takeru-san you idiot." Two head chops were properly delivered.

"Owiiiiee!"

"Agaaa."

"You dumbasses. Don't be infecting Kasumi with your stupidity, Sumika! I'll punish you for that later."

"Uuurru…" Sumika stared at me with puppy-like eyes, the cuteness was very effective.

"Ahh, fine, whatever. If it's safe, just go. I don't even care at this point."

"Yaay! See you, Takeru-chan!"

"Bye-bye."

"See you two later."

 **PX**

"No fancy delivery… I am disappoint."

"You are about to have a stick up your own ass if you don't shut up, woman." With that comeback, Ayamine held back meekly and dug in her Yakisoba.

"Oh? Is that Shirogane? And his team too!" Not too far from where I sat, an energetic Hayase dragged a faceplaming Suzumiya toward our table.

"Mitsuki… I told you so many times…"

"Ahaha, don't worry about it! The Phantom certainly doesn't care."

"1st Lt. Hayase! Drop on the ground and give me twenty!" What I received instead of push-ups was a dumb look.

"Umm, Capt. Shirogane, I'm very sorry for her behaviour."

"I will forgive her once I see some muscle stretching." With an unentertained look, Hayase did her push-ups in under a minute.

"Tsk, here you go. Happy now?"

"Not really, but since Suzumiya is cute enough, I'll let this one go." The reaction was mixed from my comment. Suzumiya lightly blushed while Hayase tightened her fist in a threatening manner.

"You have ignored us for long enough, Takeru. Do you mind introducing the two Lieutenants?" Meiya's prompt reminded me of military manner, so I shot off two lousy salutes in quick secession.

"Here's 1st Lt. Hayase Mitsuki and 1st Lt. Suzumiya of the Valkyries, you all know them though. Famous people, after all."

"My pleasure to meet the two of you, I am Mitsurugi Meiya, Second Lieutenant." Meiya stood up and shook with both of the girls.

The rest of my team was also introduced in order, Hayase and Suzumiya displayed some friendly eagerness to know my team during and after their first meeting.

"So I heard your team got an operation coming up soon, got details you want to share?" Hayase smirked with her usual pride and leaned in close.

"I told my team nothing and I'll tell you even less." I pushed her away and took a bite of my meal.

Our current seating plan was a strange one; Suzumiya sat to the left of Hayase who was to the left of me, I got Meiya on the right while everyone else perched opposite of us.

"Ehh? Stingy!" I could only sigh with Suzumiya at Hayase's display.

"Don't be crazy, woman. Even the Honour Guard doesn't know about our little outing, who the hell do you think you are?"

"Am I not your number one star? You should respect me as an elder!" Hayase grinned again, more evilly this time as she wrapped her arm around me much to the rest of my girls' dismay.

"Get outta here, Hayase. You still haven't even beaten me yet." Those were trigger words if someone ever said them to me.

"SHI-RO-GA-NE! You really don't want to live, HUH?" SHe instantly jumped out of her chair and aimed a punch for my perfect face.

"Ahem! First Lieutenant! I believe your display of friendliness was clearly received by Takeru." With the same speed as Hayase, Meiya stood up and seized Hayase's outreached arm before damage could be done.

"Ohh!? Protecting your man, Mitsurugi? You're… brave, I'll say that for ya." And for absolutely no reason whatsoever, an intense staring contest took place between the team samurai and the blood-thirsty Vanguard.

"It is to my understanding that you are First Lieutenant Hayase Mitsuki of the Valkyries, Storm Vanguard 1, correct?"

"Hehehe, you got it. Archangel's Storm Vanguard 1." A match into the air right now would explode the tension created between Meiya and Hayase. Both girls were considered the spearhead of their respective team and had their own pride to protect.

"There shall be a day, when we decide who is more suitable for this title."

"Hooo? Did I hear that right? You're challenging me, Mitsurugi? You who was a cadet only weeks ago?" Just lighting it up in here. I was enjoying every second of this delicious showdown while others either ignored it for their safety or were trying to stop it to no avail.

"It has nothing to do with our time spent, a nation does not sit well with two monarchs."

"That, I can agree to. One of us has to be better."

"Miiiitsuuukiiii… please stooopp." A helpless plea from Suzumiya calmed down Hayase during her cat-fight.

"I have decided, Shirogane! Just like chess, I have to bring down the queen to get the king's head! So you wash your neck and wait, because once I take care of your little pet guardian here, you better show me a good fight!"

"I also just decided, Hayase. I'll spoon feed you those words, one letter at a time." I answered to her smirk of superiority with the same egotism she projected.

"Very soon, 1st Lt. Hayase." Meiya finished off our provocation.

"E-everyone! F-fighting is not good!" Tama also charmed in for some assistance.

"Haaaha, y'all are alright. Once your team comes back, we should be evenly matched. I look forward to finding out who's the stronger one then." Taking her challenge with a concealed joy, I gladly accepted the dare.

"You'll find out in the near future, Hayase."

"That's good, let's go then, Haruka."

"Excuse us, Capt. Shirogane. And good luck on your mission, Archangel Squadron." Leaving those as their parting words, Hayase and Suzumiya disappeared off the scene.

"So that was the Storm Vanguard 1 of the Valkyries! She looks so strong!" I only hoped Mikoto didn't mean it in a physical sense, not like she was wrong though.

"Yeah, they don't make people Vanguard 1 without a good reason. Same is true for ours." I gave Meiya a confident wink following that line.

"Indeed, she is very worthy. However fear not, Takeru. I am more capable, I must be." Arrogant Meiya was also a nice one, I really brought out that personality… somewhere down this road.

"Good stuff, good stuff. I think dinner time is pretty much over by now. Get some good rest tonight because you all won't be sleeping for a while. I have nothing planned for tomorrow so just relax and chill, you all will be called before midnight, that's all. 13th Squadron, dismissed." The team went their separate way after a show of respect.

 **Hanger**

"Here in my hanger, just brought this new YF-23 here. It's fun to fly up here over the Yokohama airspace. But you know what I like MORE than my YF-23? Knowledge."

"…Takeru? Wh-what're… who're you even talking to?"

"In fact, I'm a lot more proud of these seven Lamborghinis here that I use to… urm, carry the new YF-23 I brought. It's like what the billion-brain-cell genius Kouzuki Yuuko says, 'what the fuck are you smoking and does your dealer accept master card?'

"…Hey, hey! Earth to Squad leader Takeru! You're gonna bump into someone like this!"

"Now maybe you've seen my end-of-the-game speech where I talk about how I have a dream once a day. You know, I dream once a day not to show off, it's again about the knowledge. In fact, the real reason I keep this YF-23 here is that it's a reminder."

"Oooh, isn't that Capt. Shirogane and Chizuru! What are you two… what is he doing?"

"Ah, help me here, Kashiwagi. Takeru is acting out or something."

"A reminder that knowledge is still knowledge, because it wasn't that long ago that I was in a shitter timeline with only forty seven points on the mental fortitude ranking chart. I didn't have any parallel universe formulas, I had no badassery."

"Is this what people call being high? You should probably grab someone else from your squad, Chizuru."

"EErr, tell me about it. I just have this one thing show him too."

"But you know what? Something happened that changed my life. I bumped into a time loop, and another one, and another one, and another one. They all showed me what I should do to become a million dollar time-traveller."

"Hey, hey look. He just put away that camera thingy! Are we done now?"

"You're right. Takeru! Is it over now!?"

By the time I finished my recording, there were two girls stood not too far from me; Kashiwagi and Class rep, both were equally confused and maybe disturbed by my self-filming.

"Yep, something Yuuko-sensei wanted me to do for her. About how every time she tries to access a file on her computer this video keeps playing, so she had me make a parody and post it instead."

"I— okay, I won't question it." Her mouth half opened, Class rep decided to not investigate further for her own sanity.

"Then I'll do the same, make sure to show me the final product though, alright?" Kashiwagi winked cutely at me as she laid her demand.

"Yeah, no problem. So what did you want with me?"

"Ah, good. I forgot to get you this earlier, here." My indication was successful in jogging Class rep's memory, she passed me a thin portfolio with almost nothing inside.

"Ohh, what could this be, I wonder?" Speaking with fake enthusiasm, I opened the folder and a single piece of paper was waiting for me.

"Let me see too!" Kashiwagi acted out of her character for a minute there and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with me.

"So, what do you think?" Class rep smiled kindly when my mockery turned to genuine surprise.

"Wooow, this is awesome!"

"Like, no joking here. This is actually amazing."

On the sheet of paper she showed me was a beautiful design for our new emblem. The picture had a black void as the background, over top the darkness, right in the center of the frame was a girl.

The girl was alone in the drawing, her lower body shielded by an open transparent oval shell. She was crouched down her kneels with a gentle and kind atmosphere, even if I could not observe her features, that was the air she let off from within the paper.

In her hands she held a circular object, It was the earth; our earth. The girl delicately held our round planet in her grasp and covered it with her body for protection.

Finally, a huge pair of wings spread out from her back, taking over the entire right side of the art. The feathers were pure white, every single strand was drawn with experiential skill and each shined brilliantly as they fanned out from her rare.

"Did you make this, Class rep?"

"Hum… I mean, yeah, obviously!" I was shot a doubtful look by the creator.

"This is wonderful. I'll be honest, I never thought you would go so far just for me." She flustered instant red at my statement.

"Wha-wh-w-w-WHAT! I-I'm not doing this just for y-you, OKAY!? This is for our team, you hear me?! FOR THE TEAM!" In a classic tsundere fashion, Class rep jumped up literally to defend her action.

"Right, so I am very happy that you made this for me. Thank you, Chizuru, it means a lot."

"UUURR… I JUST TOLD YOU IT'S NOT FOR YOU!" If she blushed any redder, we will need to invent a new colour just for that.

"Great, great. Love you too." With a caring expression, I grab hold of both her shoulders and stared powerfully into Class rep's green eyes.

"URRAAAAA!" On her embarrassed instinct, Class rep batted my arms and took off at Mach three, I measured.

"I'm tell the mechanics to paint our TSFs accordingly, okay!?" I shouted after her shrinking shadow as Class rep dashed away out of sight.

"Ara, there she goes. Must be embarrassing for someone like her." Kashiwagi whose voice I hadn't heard in minutes spoke up again.

"Hehehe, she'll get used to it."

"I won't be so sure of that, Captain. I heard you already got yourself a harem, don't you?" Good news sure travels fast.

"True that, the invitation I sent her must had gotten lost in the mail."

"Ahaha, that's quite disastrous. Although Chizuru probably wasn't thrilled at that idea in the first place." We both laughed relaxingly at Class rep's tsuntsun side.

"Luckily I got many more invites left, do you want one?"

"Ahh? Me? Haha, you joking… right, Captain?" When Kashiwagi tried to brush off my proclamation as a joke, my serious gaze prevented her from getting off the hook.

"I never joke about this stuff."

"Err… but a weirdo like me? Aha, I know. You're just trying to get in my pants, aren't you?" Chuckling teasingly again, Kashiwagi tipped her chin with her finger in a motion like how an old man would stroke his beard.

"And there's something wrong with that?"

"Wha…? Ehh?" Finally, a fluster rose to her face as I stated my belief without faltering.

"Well yeah, you got a pretty face, a fit figure and curves at all the right places. I would tap that, indeed I would." Dropping that line, I took a brave step forward and was within arm's reach to Kashiwagi's face.

"Hihi-hihi-hi… m-maybe ne-next time, Capt. S-Shirogane. I'll be going now, bye!" And like that, she escaped from my comfortable grasp, for now.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **December 19**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"If you two say no now, I would be quite upset." Sumika was nowhere near entertained by that joke.

"Kouzuki-sensei, please just continue."

"Huhu, you can be demanding when need be, huh? Alright then, here you go, Yashiro. Make sure you live long enough for me to collect some information."

"We'll be fine, Professor." Kasumi pocketed the device that Kouzuki carefully designed for her use.

"Here's your dose, Kagami. It's very different from what Yashiro has to use so you two better not trade them."

"I know." Sumika too carefully placed the mini bottle in her clothes.

"Now I don't want this drug to be recorded by your suit's database so make sure to inject yourselves manually with a syringe or an injector, got that?"

"Yes, ma'am." Both girls answered in unison.

"Then everything is ready. Really now, I still can't believe you two learned it in two days."

"We had to, it wasn't a choice." The usually timid Kasumi showed no fear when she spoke.

"Ahh, guess that's cool. Your TSFs have been modified to work with this ability, so that obviously means you can't use Prafka unless the other frame is also modded. Any questions then?"

"No, thank you very much, Kouzuki-sensei."

"Thank you." The two girls bowed gracefully to an amused Kouzuki.

"Then go, I have nothing else to tell you two that you don't already know. Make sure to come back with my data and I won't count this one against you."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Shirogane's room**

Shake, shake. Shake, shake.

"Muum… I didn't know there is night service as well."

"Haha! You're welcome, Takeru-chan!"

"We came to get you." Two greetings as per usual.

"Great. Time?"

"It's seven O'clock and we have to get ready for the mission soon!" Sumika should seriously learn to not spill her hype wherever she goes. I may or may not have over slept, by ten hours.

"Good, good. I'll finish the final preparations, let me get up first though." Lazily pulling myself out of bed, I again lazily dressed in my uniform before combing my hair while the two waited.

"So we'll be leaving soon, right? I'm excited to go to Russia!" I disregarded Sumika's comment completely and opted to care for Kasumi instead.

"Hey, Kasumi, you're okay with this, right?"

"Does it matter?" She returned some expected salt.

"No, no, not really. Even if you disliked this mission, you're still coming."

"Then it's fine, the past doesn't matter." That was a little sad for me to hear, nevertheless, Kasumi was with me now and she will always be safe under my care.

"Alright, I'll go make the final adjustments, you two go fetch me some food." Leaving behind a cheerful nod, Sumika took Kasumi by the hands and exited my room.

 **Hanger**

"…That's my Yakisoba."

Moseying into the hanger with my two escorts by my side and a piece of Yakisoba dangling in my mouth, Ayamine called me out for stealing her food.

"Here, you can eat this end." I offered her the other side of my bread which she accepted without showing emotion, we then finished it together with a kiss on the finale.

"Ummm… I shall spar you seriously one day, Ayamine." Meiya, being Meiya was seriously challenging Ayamine to a duel.

"…Come at me." That was a good standoff I got going on.

"You shall wait… patiently for your downfall."

"Not worried, you'll cushion my landing."

"A-A-Ayamine! Stop showing such indecency in p-public!" It was Class rep who flustered up to her ears with her shaking hand pointing at the two of us.

"…You're just jealous you're not getting any." Oooh, that one was a critical hit.

"Wh-wh-WHAT are you saying! IDIOT!" I allowed the following catfight to take place without interruption. Class rep and Ayamine went back and forth like they always do until Tama and Mikoto finally arrived after too long.

—

Under their frames stood eight Eishis, each with their mission planned out and ready to deploy.

"Alright, before we sortie I should go over the loadout once more. Since resupply is impossible during this mission, we'll be carrying the most ammunition possible in case of engagement.

"Archangel 1, 2, 5, and 7 will run with Strike Vanguard, Archangel 8 is soloing Rush Guard and the rest are Gun Sweeper. Sorry Kasumi, no spam attack for you." With absolutely no emotion on display, I concluded for Kasumi to be around 0.4% sadder.

"As you all can see, other than Meiya's unit; all the Shiranuis were renovated with combat paint. Meiya's is too, actually, it's just purple paint. There's also no marking on these whatsoever for clear reasons, just don't get left behind and we won't have any problems. "

"Now go grab your guns and equipment right over there." I guided their gaze with my fingers onto a small pile of weapons laid out on a rack near us.

—

The girls came back quickly with their submachine gun in one hand and their belt in the other.

"You all know this from training; H&K MP7. Even though Germany as a whole is deep down in the dumps, literary, the company still make good guns." During another info dump, Meiya threw me my piece and gear from the same stand.

"Simple stuff here; silencer, extendable stock, twenty in the mag plus one. Can be hung to the pouch on the left of your seat once you sit down. Unbuckle the top buttons on the top and the weapon can be pulled out, make sure to hook them back during TSF combat for obvious reasons."

"This little waist purse here contains five mags for the gun, two flashbangs and a pair of handcuffs. Standard gear, no lethals abiding by mission orders. Anything I missed?" We stared at everyone else for an awkward five seconds until the team brought their focus back on me.

"Good, Archangel Squadron, lock and load, we're moving!"

"Yes, sir!"

 **Airport**

"Alright, everyone strapped in? You don't want to fall out over the ocean now." While warning them, I checked the security harness that tied my TSF down to the re-entry shell of this An-225 Mriya. We had four planes in total carrying us out so each Element shared a ride with their partner.

"Archangel 2, tied."

"Archangel 3, secured."

"This is Archangel 4, I'm all good."

"Archangel 5, I am secured as well."

"Archangel 6, all tied down, no problems!"

"Archangel 7… I'm good."

"This is Archangel 8, I'm secured too!" It appeared nobody will be swimming with the fishes tonight.

"Archangel Squadron, all confirmed. Time sync, 2359 hours, 50 seconds."

"Synced." I heard response from every girl on my team including our pilots.

"All status green. Go for take-off." The rambling noises of the engines roared as I felt the slight G-force of us being lifted into the dark sky of this night.

Another stage welcomed our presence, another performance we shall show to awe the world.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **December 20, 2001**

 **Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

The sky above him was pitch-black except for a couple of tiny stars that shined high in the air, as if they could overcome the consumption of their light from the darkness, the stars burned futilely just a little longer. Maybe he too, wished for her to burn just a little brighter.

Yuuya laid on the roof of a structure in the ruins of the Ц-04 Base, his thoughts scrambled to a mess that he himself cannot decode. The night would surely be cold without his flight jacket that bore the symbol of his former alliance, now it was nothing but another thorn stabbed in his cracked heart.

After some worthless time spent stargazing, Yuuya slowly descended down the oval roof until he reached the unit that he used to climb up, a Su-47 Berkut. Yuuya hesitated for a short while before finally deciding to come aboard the TSF, he entered the cockpit in reverse and flew it down to ground level.

"Hey, sorry for making you wait, Cryska. I just kinda wanted to see the sky a bit closer, naturally." It was true that the monitor of a TSF wasn't the best option when viewing the sky.

"You remember the song Inia always like to hum, right? Lt. Colonel— ah, guess she's only Major now, ahaha. Demotion really strikes at any time, huh? Anyway, Maj. Latrova told us the meaning of that song the last time we met, I think it's call the Snow Maiden, about the nature and the season of winter. Ahe, I'm actually not that good at understanding this kind of stuff… kinda hard for me, really." It was a lie, Yuuya's lie.

The song was about a lonely snow maiden who knew no love, who had no friends and no family. Until the day she fell in love with a boy, they laughed, played and shared joyful times together. However, as a being of ice, it was the warmth from the girl's own heart that doomed her, for the moment her cold heart received the boy's kindness, herself melted, as a being of snow.

Yuuya understood the fairy tale perfectly, and he knew such a story wasn't suited for Cryska. It was too fitting, it hit too close to home.

"Inia must have heard it was she was young, probably from where you two were born, right? Sorry, I probably shouldn't bring this up so soon. With all the delays we had, we can finally set out to go there tomorrow after Maj. Latrova delivers us some supplies. I wanted to have gotten this done about a week earlier, but… things got a bit difficult."

"Guess I shouldn't bother you all that much, Cryska… I… just sometime… miss the old days, that's all. Although since I can't go back anymore so it's really pointless just thinking about them, right? Sorry, let's talk about another topic."

"Inia really grew over the past week, you know? She doesn't get scared of piloting alone anymore and is really skilled, it's funny, really. I always thought you did most of the piloting since your seat is above hers, kinda make you the higher person, you know? As for us, Inia's support and reaction time is really good, we really do work well as a team, all thanks to you, Cryska… I really, really miss—"

"Yuuya, Yuuya! What're you doing in the Berkut?" For the first time in a long while, Yuuya heard his own name called by another.

"Ah, Inia. Sorry, I was just… checking the specs and fuel."

"Okay then, when will you finish?"

"Yeah… I'm done, coming down now." With those words, Yuuya disembarked the Su-47 and joined Inia on the ground.

"So we're going tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, tomorrow is the date, Maj. Latrova said she'll drop by and bring us some supplies around two AM, should be here any minute."

"That's great! I'm sure that Cryska would—" Then Inia suddenly stopped speaking, her expression froze as if time itself stopped for the esper girl. Her stare turned blank in an instant with both arms hanging lifelessly by her sides.

"Ah— Inia! INIA!" Yuuya dashed to her under a second, he's own appearance was that of fear and panic.

"Hey, HEY, INIA! You okay!?" He shook her back and forth without adding too much or too little force.

"Inia! Don't do this—"

"Why…? Who… are you? Ah, Trista… is that you? You are here too?" Yuuya had absolutely no clue as to who or what Inia was referring to, so he could only kept silent and allowed her to snap back on her own account.

"…Why… is there any colour for him? Yuuya, I don't know what to do…"

"What?! What're you talking about?!"

"He… he doesn't have it… he doesn't have any colour."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"—Time on target, sixty seconds." My comms announced the Captain's update.

"Currently arriving three thousand metres AGL to your AO."

 _Kasumi, confirm for me again._

" _We arrived, they're here. I can feel her. I know it._ " Kasumi was doubtless in her claim.

" _I can feel it too, Takeru-chan. There're two person— no wait, there're three things down there._ " Two validations were better than one.

 _Good, then we'll execute as planned, got that?_

" _Copy that._ "

"—alright, people listen up! We have our objectives: seize control of the two TSFs our targets possess, execute capture order on the HVTs and exfil after securing the LZ for pickup." As I ran down the list of our mission goals, I performed multiple system checks to ensure no accidents could take place before and after dropping.

"Time on target, thirty seconds."

"All units, engines up and unhook your harness." I also activated my own Arondight with the rest of my team.

"Time on target, fifteen seconds. Re-entry shell door opening."

"—Archangel 2, unit up."

"—Archangel 3, up and running."

"—Archangel 4, system is green."

"—Archangel 5, engines all good."

"—Archangel 6, running on all systems."

"—Archangel 7, frame confirmed."

"—Archangel 8, all system green."

The seven verifications ensured me of my team's knowledge of procedure and their safety.

"All units, prepare for drop in five… four… three… two… one… slides disengaged. Good luck, Archangel Squadron." A massive rush of G-force pushed us out of the shells and right into free-fall with a downward acceleration of nine-point-eight-o metres per second.

My Arondight cut through the invisible air and dark clouds with great velocity as the wind gusted us by, the sensors slowly picking up the massive earth after we exited the atmosphere where the clouds resides.

"Two thousand metres until landfall! Control your descent! Stay in formation!" We flew and flew, the endless ground covered by a black curtain of the night shielded us from unwanted attention.

"One thousand metres until landfall! Hitting terminal velocity in six seconds!" Our TSFs were in a nosedive position to reduce as much air resistance as possible so we could reach zero metres as soon as possible.

"Three hundred! Reversal maneuver now!" On my mark, my team boosted their frames collectively and flipped their machines right-side up for landing.

"Control your impact! Landfall in three… two… one… touchdown!" A fraction of a second before my line, eight machine giants smashed the surface of the planet with just enough pressure to avoid damaging our TSFs.

"CS, MO. Spread out and search for the HVTs!"

 **Author's note**

And now we fight, I know you guys will look forward to that.

This is also where all the Total Eclipse VN readers would want my head on a platter. Well, you know what? Tooooo bad, the canon is being broken up, oooooh noooooooo!

Unfortunately, the next update will be at least two weeks from now. I need more time to procrastinate and play some games. Maybe finish Haruko Maxis or whatever and start the days after… haha, won't do that, too depressing.

So rain favourites, follows and reviews down upon me! So I can be more lazy and write less! Cause that's how the methodology works, apparently.

Seriously though, always I'm very thankful. When I called you all out last time for leaving me hanging, we got past the 200 view count on opening day for the last chapter. Niooce!

BETA done by chad001, I wanna make a joke about ya mama but don't want to sound like an 11 years old squeaker, difficult is life.

 **Also, important call for potterharry9418. I sent you a PM to your actual account, check it and get back at me, brah. Stuff on the TE visual novel, last chance for me to make changes.**


	27. The undertakers I

**Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Takamura Yui**

 **December 20, 2001**

 **Yukon Base, Polestar restaurant**

"Choosing real alcohol this time, First Lieutenant? Not a bad pick at all." Yui, who wasn't drunk in the slightest heard a muffled call that somewhat resembled a sentence.

"Whaa…? Hic—! Nuubudy is druuuk! Douut tell merr that!" She was only waving her hands crazily and dirtying her hair as a greeting to the newcomer.

"This is… impressive in its own way. Mind if I join you?" Due to the poor lighting of the bar and the constant earthquake around Yui, it took her much longer than a second to realize her companion was Second Lieutenant Sharon Heim of the US Army.

"Ahaa-hahaha! Ouuukay! Lonnng tumee no seea!" Sharon sat down like a ghost to Yui's left, not saying a word or making any noises. What she definitely didn't do was laugh at the less-than-honourable Honour Guard to her side who was still very not drunk.

"Whaa'ca getting, 2nd Lt. Sharrron! It's ooon meee!"

"…Huhuhuhu, I actually brought my own drink, see here?" When she held up her left hand again, there magically appeared a bottle of scotch. It obviously wasn't carried in by Sharon, cause that would make too much sense.

"Haa! Wull doune! Lettme have a teast tooo! Hic!"

"We probably shouldn't do that… although taking a break is a much better alternative." Carefully, Sharon pushed away Yui's fifth almost empty beer mug to the bartender.

"Uuuuu! Drinnk! Me bottttleeee! Secnod Lieuutennat is suuuuu meeean!" After flapping her arms around some more, Yui fell powerlessly on the table by accident.

"Oucchiee!" And then she just laid there, unmoving and quite wasted in Sharon's opinion.

"Emm, why… don't you come with me first, 1st Lt. Takamura? Let's get you cleaned up a bit, or maybe a lot."

—

"So you're a happy drunk, huh? Can't say I saw that coming, heheh."

"…Please do not let that spread… for all of eternity. Or else… I really will have to commit Seppuku …" With tears in her eye socket, Yui did her best to look strong and not be made the laughing stock of the century.

"Hahaha, don't worry. My mouth is sealed." All Sharon did was shine a kind smile as she held Yui's arm and assisted her out of the washroom.

Now that her mind was cleared, Yui realized how absolutely terrible and hilarious she looked when drunk, neither of which she would ever want to be spread. Having finally recollected herself, the pair treaded their way back to the table. Yui sat down and again placed her cheek on the hard wood surface out of self-disappointment this time around.

"Do you think the bartender will tell on me?" She surveyed around for the new barkeep hired after the Yukon Base Incident, who was nowhere to be found.

"It's fine, it's fine! I already talked with her for extra tips. Your secret is buried, First Lieutenant." With the same smile on her face, Sharon gave Yui a few pats on the back with her right hand for comfort.

"…My head hurts, a lot."

"Then why… did you drink that much?" The logical inquiry from Sharon should have been expected by Yui, yet she was unable to provide a sensible answer within a reasonable time.

"I… hate myself." Seeing that telling Sharon about her great adventure in Japan could be considered as a betrayal to her new employers, Yui elected to bypass the question as a substitute.

"You should really take a break, 1st Lt. Takamura. Everyone has their own limits when it comes to liquor." The suggestion from the American Eishi didn't do well in pairing up with her action. Sharon took the bottle in her left hand and delivered herself a deep mouthful of scotch.

"No, I'm still well enough. My recovery is at least on par." Pairing that statement while practically fusing her face with the counter didn't help her argument.

"Well, good for you! Ahaha." Sharon just seemed genuinely happy.

"Aruu… I am late on the greeting, however I must still say; welcome to Yukon Base, 2nd Lt. Heim. What brought you here?" At last, Yui remembered her manners after making a complete fool of herself.

"Huhuhu, sorry but can't say. Work related. How about you, First Lieutenant? Have you travelled anywhere since we last met?"

"Indeed I have. Just returned from Japan two days ago." The last time these two met was during the closing hours of the terrorist attack.

"So what're you up to then?"

"Unfortunately, that is classified. I do pray for it to be something favourable." Yui and Sharon spoke no more after that. The fact was that one of them was unable to pick herself up from the bar table didn't help with developing their friendship.

"So err… why did you bring that drink with you?" Still, the silent atmosphere was much more painful to bear in comparison, thus the new icebreaker from Yui was said.

"Oh, this? Fuuuu… it's all Leon." Having just rested enough, Yui finally got off the counter and started a normal conversation with the American.

"How can this be related to… errm, Second Lieutenant… Kuze?" While her sight was still fuzzy, Yui's memories served her well.

"Well… ay, guess I tell you. We were sitting up the mood with a little drink, right? I even had candles prepared since it's been a hard time for him. But the idiot fell asleep while drinking, before we could start the foreplay."

That paragraph of explanation was quite confusing for someone like Yui. She worked her brain intensely to understand the supposed meaning of their activity.

"So were you two planning on…"

"Yes, we were about to sleep together."

"Ahaaa… so you were…" Happy for her correct guess or saddened by other reasons, Yui wasn't sure. But hearing anything sexual just threw her off her game generally.

"Huhuhu, even I get embarrassed if you don't say something after that, First Lieutenant." That tease struck Yui in her mental Achilles heel.

"Ehh? Err…errr— I-I… g-good for you and 2nd Lt. Kuze! Yes! It is important to keep an in-intimate relationship! Yes, that's it! It is vital to take good care of your b-b-body!" Her hot, flustered cheeks gave away the sudden awkwardness Yui underwent.

"Ahahaha… thanks. Soooo… did you and Yuuya get together… you know, before he left?" Starting to get a little drunk herself, Sharon asked what could be considered an insensitive question.

"Ah… no, no such event took place." The extra layer of red couldn't be noticed on top of her already existing blush.

"Aww… don't worry though, I think you'll get to meet him soon." What Sharon said next in her slight intoxication was alarming enough for Yui to snap out of her dizzy mood.

"Wha— yes, that's true. But how did you know…?"

"Huh? You know about our missi— No, wait. Do you— do you know about that?"

Both girls stared at each other in confusion as the tension rapidly raised high the clearer their thoughts became. By now, the air was starting to become smothering for a normal person. Yet Yui and Sharon studied the one in the opposite seat profoundly without losing concentration.

"Do you think… you'll meet Yuuya in the near future?" The professedly random question from Yui was a test, in her effort to dig whatever she could out of Sharon seeing the blond was relatively drunk at this moment.

"I… am sure that I'll meet him under suitable conditions, 1st Lt. Takamura." Regrettably, the Infinites test pilot lacked the sufficient amount of booze in her bloodstream for her to spill that secret.

"Very well, I do believe it shall be better if we both excused ourselves. I hope to return to my room and rest." Both female Eishis understood there was a dangerous path before them if they kept discussing the forbidden topic.

"Yeah, yeah I'll do the same. See you next time, 1st Lt. Takamura."

"You as well, 2nd Lt. Heim."

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **December 20, 2001**

 **Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

There was no time to react. A buffer period for mental and physical preparation was not given to the two rogue surface pilots.

Eight TSFs broke through the heavens as they descended down from high above the skies, breaking apart the clouds and scattering innumerable sum of birds into the air. At the same time countless animals fled from the uncalled commotion, a muted roar of engines barely reached far enough for Yuuya to heed.

The American pilot felt the ground shaking when a storm of snow and dust blew from ground-zero of their landing zone, his mind went into overdrive without missing a beat. For he knew, the newcomers' intention wasn't to make friends.

"Inia! Come on, get yourself together!" His first priority was to ensure Inia's safety, the girl returned to her senses after her name was repeatedly called for a few more times.

"Ah- what's happening…?"

"I don't know, I think they really just can't let us free. Get in the Berkut and go somewhere safe, I'll head for the Shiranui." Keeping himself as calm as he could under the situation, Yuuya scuffed through Inia's hair when he ordered for her escape.

"…Are you sure you can make it?" Inia was indeed very concerned for Yuuya's welfare.

"Yeah, don't worry about me—" However, the fact of the moment was that Inia really needed to worry about Yuuya.

Before he could even finish that sentence, the thin sheet of metal that used to be a reinforced wall burst apart revealing a TSF, as if Yuuya was staring into a mirror of his own machine, the frame that torn down the wall could had only been his Shiranui Second.

"What the—! Inia, follow me and run!"

"Awwa!" With his reflex already taking over, Yuuya took Inia in his arms and carried her away princess style.

"—umm… you two down there, freeze, please?" From the loudspeaker on the machine came a very unprofessional warning, Yuuya heed no attention to the words of the face Shiranui Second's pilot and instead sprint as fast as his legs could carry him to the central building that was only fifty metres away.

"Yuuya! Yuuya! Cryska! She's still back there!" Inia called out, reminding the young man of the girl that he left behind.

"We… we have to get away! We'll come back for her later!" As Yuuya leap over a multitude of debris and wrecks into a crack in the wall of the main building, he swallowed the pain of abandoning the female of his life.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"—Archangel 1 to all units, Su-47 secured. Two HVTs have escaped into the command building, Archangel 5 and 6 will disembark and search on foot with me, the rest will continue hunting for the final target and Shiranui Phase 3." I gave out some simply orders using the microphone attached to my fortified suit.

"—Archangel 5, copy."

"—6, copy as well."

"—Archangel 2, roger. Will take over command for rest of the squadron." It was a little concerning having Sumika in the lead, then again, I had to give that girl some responsibly in due course.

From the corner of my sight, I spotted Class rep and Kasumi's units gathering by Sumika. They were discussing briefly a tactic for finding the last HVT and TSF on our list.

"Meiya, Mikoto, you two are on me. Check your weapons and disembark."

"Roger."

—

"This bloody base is a mess. You two, keep sharp and watch for any movements."

"Understood." The two girls behind me replied the same thing at the same time.

Following who I assumed to be Bridges and Sestina, my team also entered through the same break in the wall they used a minute earlier. The inside of this structure was no better than the outside, broken doors, windows and general concrete shattered all over the floor with evidence of a bombing run lying above them all.

I read in a report about the Ц-04 Base Incident and how the Soviets just bombed the shit out of everything after the base evacuated, but they didn't do a very good job from the looks of it.

"This must have been where they traversed." Mikoto pointed her flashlight onto a path of newly formed footsteps that led further down a hallway.

"Alright, let's get after them then; safety off, just don't shoot all willy-nilly." After some entertained glances from both of the girls around me, we all ran down the dark hall that Bridges travelled.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

"Haa… haaa. Yuuya! Wait! It's a dead end this way!" A huffing voice called out to Yuuya, the girl running with ragged breathing was having trouble catching up.

"I know, it'll be fine. The Shiranui Second hanger is just through this wall." Yuuya checked his six before pushing off a piece of rock that covered a small crack in the wall.

They were in an office at the end of the hallway, there was no longer anywhere else to escape to if the pair were to be cornered at this time. The single corridor behind them was long and narrow, not suitable for an advantageous gunfight.

On the other hand, the hole in the office that Yuuya just uncovered was befitting for a small girl to crawl under.

"Inia, go through here and get to the 94 Second." Yuuya shot another tense look to the entrance as he gently held Inia's shoulders.

"Eh? Then how about you!?"

"I'll be fine, Inia. I can find another way. Besides, once you get the Shiranui here those people won't even be a problem." Yuuya's gruelling smile didn't hide his uncertainty too well.

"…Okay, I'll get the 94 and come back for you! I promise!" Even so, Inia was mature enough to not get in his way.

"That'll be great, and I promise I'll be fine before that."

"Be careful, Inia."

"You too, Yuuya. Don't let them get you." The young girl didn't waste any more time on sentimental farewells, instead she quickly got down on the floor and disappeared into the building.

Seeing Inia depart left Yuuya just a little feeling of loneliness, however the man knew what he must accomplish to secure a future for them both.

"Ahaaa… can I call myself a cool guy now?" With nobody left to hear his joke, Yuuya laughed dryly as his only audience.

No matter how little time he had left, there must be something he could do to defend himself with. Yuuya truly believed that. So with only a handgun and two grenades left on him, the former test pilot wasn't going down without a fight.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

We spent a couple more minutes jogging vigilantly down multiple halls with our flashlight as the only illumination source. Eventually, the long, isolated passage ended to a single double door.

"You got the construction schematic, Mikoto?"

"Yeah, the blueprints show this room to be a dead end." Mikoto responded in her serious voice.

"Stack up, on me." Two wordless nods answered me and the girls moved next to the door.

No matter how one was to use their imagination on this situation, it was obvious the duo of escapees ran through here. Since we saw the structure of this building from outside and from the map, we presumed for them to have hid somewhere in there and were awaiting our entry.

"Breach and clear." Without communicating in words, Meiya and Mikoto readied their firearms.

"Blinder, ready." From her tiny waist purse Mikoto carefully pulled out a M84 stun using her left hand, she then bit the safety pin off with her mouth and primed it for detonation.

Besides her stood Meiya, the other girl slowly gaped the door a slim bit, just wide enough for the grenade to go in.

"Go on three… ready?" Both girls nodded once more.

At that time, I wasn't sure if what I felt was tension or excitement. A mixture of both was probably the best guess. If I ever done something similar to this mission before I sure as hell didn't remember the details. So for the first time in possibly centuries I was getting to experience a new thrill.

"Three… two—" But a sudden flash of white just had to ruin my fun and instantly cut off my countdown.

Before my eyes, the world spun in haste like the fall during a rollercoaster ride. A precipitous, unanticipated force pushed my body downwards and into the air at once. Disoriented, I stumbled around, hoping to find my balance but failed and landed hard on my back not a second later.

"Errga! Shit the flashba—" I briefly heard Mikoto's shout of panic from somewhere across the doorway, her fast reaction was what saved me from falling victim to our own trick.

Even with my vision shielded by my arm, I still felt the second wave of burning white light and the thundering boom followed by the intense ringing of my ears. Half of the room's door was weighting down on my body, I could barely spot the blasted pieces of the rest of this door and part of the other one.

As I recovered from the temporary blindness, the shadow of a running man followed by his heavy footsteps sprinted away from us and down the hall where we journeyed minutes earlier.

"—fuck! Meiya! Mikoto!" While I had the mad urge to chase after our target who just duped my team, these two were the more important priority.

"Go! I got Yoroi here! Just go!" By good luck, Meiya also regained her senses and was already tending to Mikoto who the stun went off closest to.

"Make sure to catch up!" Exercising all the muscles in my legs, I burst out from under the collapse and dashed as fast as possible in pursue of the HVT.

—

A left, a left, a right and straight ahead. I chased his silhouette for a few good hundred metres throughout this maze of a base. During this hunt, we exchanged a couple of blind shots as a try of slowing down the other, it was lucky and unlucky that neither of us hit our mark.

Nevertheless, no race goes on forever. By the end of my hunt, I cornered the target when he ran into a dead-end created by fallen debris. The walls around him confronted my prey and allowed no easy way out.

I took half a second to catch my breath, he did the same when we both realized the blockade was immoveable for the time being. A short rest later, I raised my PDW and took aim. Looking down my barrel, the pistol in his hands was also visible with its iron sight trained in on me.

"Second Lieutenant Yuuya Bridges! We have orders to take you in, stop resisting or this could turn ugly very fast." The first words I ever spoke to another male in quite some time were a warning, a serious one at that.

"Who are you and what do you want!?" A classic question Bridges cried back while not taking his finger off the trigger.

"We're here to protect you, if you actually believe that." He shot me a smug smile, thinking I was joking about the matter.

"Pointing a SMG my way doesn't really sound so kind!"

"Well, you should try and not shoot at your bodyguards next time."

"Damn it! You people just had to come over and ruin everything!"

He was upset; that much was obvious, yet his anger wasn't directed towards me. The American was grieving over another matter entirely and I didn't understand his reason for doing so.

"Would you please cooperate? I don't want to make this painful, for the both of us." Bridges' countenance altered for a blind look, he appeared hesitant about trusting my words.

"Alright, I'll go with you." Then all of a sudden, Takamura's Eishi slowly surrendered his hands into the air as he declared, the pistol still hanging by his finger.

"Huh, that would be great. Drop your gun." The clink of metal hitting floor sounded once. How wonderful that he decided to work with me instead of continuing to put up a fight, if he really was giving up, that is.

I strapped the MP7 by the leash to my shoulder and approached Bridges cautiously. The pair of handcuffs taken from my pouch was spun open to seize his wrists. He offered his arms as a sign of giving up, the lighting from my new angle made it difficult to make out his face.

"So just who are you people?" Bridges asked again when I was about to cuff him.

"Classified."

"Then guess the deal is off." That surely was what he said, Bridges said that when the metal edge was about ten centimetres away from his forearms.

Truth be told, no part of me took his abdication soberly. Or maybe I just thought how boring it was be if Bridges seriously gave up right away, that would make this trip of ours very much wasted.

So for the next spilt second, I swung up the shackles in my right hand and lurched them around to smack his face with the metal end akin to brass knuckles. However, a moment of scepticism overcame me when all he did was reach out his left hand like a foolish method of protection.

Then I noticed it, something shining around his middle finger, and it sure as hell wasn't an engagement ring.

It was the pin of a grenade.

"Oh fuck reall—" Another cling chimed out, this one was much more deadly than the last.

My survival instinct kicked in immediately and my body dived away from the source before I even noticed. That move turned out to be a mistake on my part.

As I leaped backwards for safety, Bridges actually surged forward over the frag he just dropped seconds ago. The target was holding some sort of pipe-like object in his right hand and pitched it right for my face.

One way or another, my combat aptitude acted out with full force. Moving by almost in-human impulsive speed, I brought up my gun at the last second to block the force that would have surely sent me flying.

"Arck!" Defending a full-on swing and dodging one were two different businesses, the sheer power of his attack broke my last-minute guard and I stumbled a few steps back in the hallway as a result.

Advancing by his attack, Bridges aimed his weapon again and was determined to send another hit my way. However, taking two strikes in one day was just too much for my pride.

"MEIYA!" The time was right to pull my emergency backup.

All it took was one shout. As if I summoned my samurai girl from a magic circle, Meiya was there with a sword in her hands the next second, protecting me. I didn't see where she came from or how fast she reached me, still, all that mattered what for her to be where I needed her to be.

I fell down on the floor when two armaments crossed path above my head, Meiya's katana against whatever Bridges was using. Surprisingly, what I thought was only a pipe didn't break or even crack when bashed by her legendary Japan soul.

"Wha—?!" When Meiya reached us with the speed of light, I wasn't the only one shocked.

"If you do not wish to unsheathe that blade, then do not blame me for your disadvantage." Meiya's sword flashed right in front of my eyes as she jumped to reflect Bridges' attack, after hearing her words, I also noticed it was a sheathed katana that he hit me with.

Bridges plodded backwards with his sword in hand, he heedfully drew the silver weapon and threw the sheath a few metres off the side.

The scowl he shot each of us as we turned the tide on him was humorous, yet dangerous; this man was not a simple prey and I understood that the minute I entrapped him, Bridges was a fighter, a very competent one at that.

However, I too, am a combatant, and there is no hunting like the hunting of man.

"Jesus Christ. That was good thinking there, dropping a dud on me. Scared me shitless if you must know." I regained my composure and half-heartedly joked.

"Heh, thanks asshole." He whiffed back at us in anger and exchanged glares of menace with Meiya.

"So… wanna work with us now?"

"I still refuse."

"Hoo? In that case, how do plan on escaping from here, ex-Second Lieutenant? Break a hole in the wall?" Bridges only observed us up and down without an answer. So we stared intensely at each other for a good minute, he was rigid and strained as can be while I finally got to enjoy every moment of our standoff.

"Takeru, Meiya-san!" Another sound echoed quietly within the short hallway, a rushed Mikoto caught up and was alerted to our enemy.

Now that my party had gathered in full, we lost our only reason to drag out this fight.

"Alright, this is taking a long time. Meiya, apprehend him." By my words, Meiya pulled her trusty katana out of its scabbard and changed her stance for offence.

"As you wish." Meiya took an intimidating step forward when Bridges prepared his own sword. The two locked eyes with one another, both ready to attack or defend all in a moment's notice.

I never thought an American soldier could be to any good with a Japanese saber, yet the atmosphere Bridges processed declared otherwise. Meiya too picked up the fact that she wasn't fighting against some random ninja-wannabe as well, her movements became prudent and her gaze sharper than her sword.

They both waited for the right moment, the perfect time to strike. And as fate would have it, the dual received their signal when gravity pulled another piece of the structure down and impacted the floor with a thud.

Meiya took that chance and instantly closed the three metres gap with a single leap, her katana outstretched to the right was brought down hard upon Bridges who guarded against the overbearing force. He twisted his body rapidly and spun away from Meiya's second charge. Already prepared to turn the tables, Bridges returned with an uppercut that was avoided when Meiya leaned to her left.

Off on the sideline l watched the performance that transpired before me, it served to remind me just exactly how skilled Meiya can be with the appropriate tools in hand.

Metal sparks flew in all directions from the conflict of swords, it was a masquerade for the steel, a dance of life and death.

"What do you think, Mikoto? Good fight?" Mikoto who was too engrossed by the flash of blades in her observation failed to answer me immediately.

"Ah, y-yeah. Meiya-san is really good… w-w-wait! That's not the issue right now! Aren't we supposed to capture that person?! Do something, Takeru!" This chick was toooo demanding for someone who didn't even swipe a knife.

"Tsssk, fine, fine. Meiya, finish this and let's go home!" My shout caught the attention of both combatants as they lowered their swords for a short period.

"Very well, Takeru. —You're quite proficient with a Japanese steel, young man. It is indeed an honour duelling with you." Abruptly, Meiya sheathed her sword once more and faced Bridges directly without a weapon.

"What are you…?" Bridges tightened his defence when a clear murderous aura could be detected from my samurai.

"It has been a while since I last had the pleasure to contend against a valuable opponent."

"Yeah? I didn't think there would be people better than her too." With a snort, Bridges picked up on Meiya's statement.

"Tactlessly, I do not have the time nor luxury to further engage in this dance with you. So I ask, would you accept one final clash?"

Meiya tensely lowered both hands until she griped the handle with one and the tip of the scabbed with the other. Her legs spread slightly and her body relaxed to pour strength into the muscles around those areas.

"He, you're confident, huh?!"

"But of course, I do not lose my battles." It was Bridges' turn to formulate himself this time. He took the katana firmly in both hands and steadied it right down the middle, once he was sure of his posture, not one part of his body moved an inch.

"I'll accept your challenge then." The time was now, the time to end their duel.

"The name is Mitsurugi Meiya, HERE I COME!"

"Come on then!" A deafening roar overtook the room, a bright flash of light beamed down from above the stage. Then the battle was over, a victor had been decided just then.

From the ceiling, a lone katana hanged with its tip stuck between the cracks. Down on the floor, Meiya held her outreached sword with one hand after a horizontal draw strike.

"Haa… guess you won then." Bridges carefully lifted both of his empty hands into the air as if he surrendered, hopefully for real this time.

"You have my gratitude for that match. Excellent performance." Meiya's blade was stashed for the second and final time. She readjusted her stance and handcuffed Bridges who willingly assumed capture without further resisting.

"What do you want with me?" Once Bridges was brought before me, I calmly studied him for any possible hidden tricks.

"Where's the girl?"

"What girl?" It really pissed me off when people decide to play dumb, especially if they obviously know it's pointless.

"I mean the girl that ran away when you distracted us, smartass. You really think I didn't know?"

"Tch, bastard…" Luckily, he wasn't foolish enough to let his upset be shown, or else this would be really uninteresting as a show.

"Now now, let's all calm down okay? No need to—" Another occurrence interrupted my half-spoken sentence. The ground below our feet suddenly shook violently like never before.

The couple of us took a second to rebalance ourselves and I immediately watched for any suspicious movements from Bridges. It was an explosion, no doubt, the question was where and who.

"—Archangel 1 to all units, report in!"

"—Archangel 2, I'm with Kasumi-chan and we know nothing. Check—"

"—agra! This is Archangel 4, we're under attack! Repeat, we're under attack! Hostile numbers, unknown! Appear to be Russian TSFs!" Another radio signal cut off Sumika's update. Its shouter was Class rep, and the situation didn't look good.

"Archangel 2 to 1, HVT 2 secured. Requesting order."

"Archangel 1 to all units, Arc 2 will escort HVT 2 and rendezvous on my marker in sixty. I'll be heading out with Arc 3 and assessing the circumstances."

"—Archangel 3 understood."

"Archangel 4, copy!"

"Got it, Takeru, let us hurry." Kasumi, Class rep and Meiya all replied positively to my orders.

I motioned for the girls to bring Bridges along as we moved for the entrance. Now that we caught our guy, there was no need to go quiet. I tore down some of the lighter walls in our way and was finally reunited with the outside air.

Just like we agreed, Sumika and Kasumi's TSFs surfaced into my view slowly, carefully and steadily with a silver-haired girl in one of the machine's hands.

"Looks like we just caught your Russian girl, Bridges. This could get interesting now, and I know you want to see this."

 **Inia Sestina**

 **Non-chronological**

 **Hanger wreckage**

Inia was on a mission that she alone could accomplish, she ran down past some blockades formed from rubbish on her way towards the hanger where the Phase 3 was parked at. Inia was going to help Yuuya, finally she could repay him for all that he given to her.

The inside of the broken down hanger was dim, expectedly so. Inia warily paced over to where the TSF should be based on her memory. When the silhouette of her and Yuuya's frame ultimately came into her line of sight, the excitement Inia felt made her oblivious to what was obscured in darkness.

"—you won't make it, Inia." A tiny, almost insufficient voice called out to her at the last second from somewhere in the shadow. It was a voice Inia hadn't heard in ages, yet she still remembered it like yesterday.

"Trista… is that really you!? So you really did come here!" Overjoyed at her long lost twin's presence, Inia happily galloped in her direction until she was stopped by the sight of the cold barrel of a suppressor.

"…Trista—?"

"Inia, we came to bring you in." Trista stared at her indifferently with her usual stoic emotion, yet even when she knew that was exactly what her sister was like, Inia couldn't help but feel a sudden shock at her twin's action.

"…Why are you doing this, Trista!? Are you here with that person…?"

"Da."

"How can you stand being around that?! It… it doesn't have anything."

As the words flew out from her mouth, Inia was suddenly assaulted by a sense of anger and peril. Now Trista didn't take a single step from where she quietly stood, but Inia was sure that her mood changed greatly even when her appearance stayed the same.

"That's because you don't know anything, Inia. You are only a child." It should have been seen as an insult which was thrown at the ex-Russian pilot, but for some reason Inia felt that her sister said those words with its intended meaning.

"How are you so different!? We're the same, Trista!"

"That's not true, my name is Yashiro Kasumi. And we're very different, everywhere." She said a name, a name Inia didn't even understand. Then she denied their link, a link formed from their blood.

"We came from the same place! We lived at the same home for a long time! How can you not know that!?" Inia was earnestly unhappy now, her sister who everyone else forgot, avoided or disliked when only she commemorated was refuting the time they had together.

"Those days were hollow, I don't have them anymore. I live for a different purpose now, I only want to finish this past."

"Then… who am I…?" Inia felt dejected, she was not a part of her memories anymore.

"A shadow… I don't remember you anymore… prastíte (sorry)." Seeing their saddening conversation had came to an end, both esper girls were ready to follow their obligation.

Inia was going to reach the Phase 3 placed a bit further away from where she was, she had to, and she must. She also understood that Trista intended to shoot her the moment she made a move, her eyes told that much.

So the two esper girls stood still, glaring into each other's pupils. Inia didn't bother budging a muscle as she had no chance at outrunning a bullet, be it supressed or not. She wasn't sure how accurate Trista was; holding that MP7 with one hand. Albeit she did look a bit tired, she was nowhere near powerless enough to drop her gun.

"Inia, give up… and come with us. You have no tomorrow otherwise." Trista was clearly not the best at negotiation, making Inia only feel affronted by that request.

"I refuse! You and your—"

Inia's sentence was never finished. Before she could offend Trista and her associates, a giant piece of the building shredded down when a TSF's hand reached in and forcefully pulled apart the rest of that construction.

Inia gazed on as the surface fighter watchfully entered through the newly founded hole and realized her existence, the machine bent down near Inia who only stared emotionlessly as its cockpit opened gradually, revealing another surface pilot.

The newcomer to the stalemate was a powerful girl, that was the first thought to pop into the esper's head. After she took a couple of steps outside where the moonlight shined at a right angle for Inia to study her features, she couldn't fathomed just who exactly was waving her hand dynamically at both her and Trista.

"Ahha! You look just like that girl we're supposed to catch!"

For a good dozen seconds, Inia completely froze from hearing such a nonsensical line. She was quite confused, as a matter of course; this girl piloted a TSF into the hanger and utterly wiped away any sense of tension.

"…What are you doing, Sumika-san? I was in an important talk." Trista seemed to know this person quite well, must had been another of her friends that no doubt came to take Yuuya away from Inia.

"Aha-ha! Sorry, Kasumi-chan. It was just taking so long and we didn't find the third target anywhere." Trista nodded lightly and the two conserved a bit more about topics that didn't interest Inia in the slightest.

"That's what Takeru-san calls irresponsible. He'll punish you for sure."

"Eeeh?! Will he? I feel that I'm helping you out right now though!"

"Then go ahead; help me."

"—what's your name, little girl? You look just like Kasumi-chan!"

Eventually, the conversation between the two invaders was directed back to Inia. She didn't actually think she could use this chance to escape so she just stood there until the red-haired pilot noticed her again.

"…Who are you and what are you doing here?" Firing back her best attempt at an angry glare, Inia's sign of hostility was missed by the immature pilot completely.

"My name is Kagami Sumika! I know this sounds weird but will you come with us? We promise to treat you nicely and won't hurt you!" With that, this Sumika beamed off the most energetic and innocent smile Inia had ever seen; second to Yuuya, obviously, but it still took her off guard that she just appeared so friendly and harmless.

"Why… what do you want with us?" Inia instinctively took a few small steps back.

"Huuuuh? Did you not explain this, Kasumi-chan?"

"No." Sumika gave Trista a blank look before coming even closer to Inia. She placed both her hands on her shoulder and locked eyes without all while keeping her happy attitude.

"You see, Inia-chan, we're here to take you guys somewhere safe because we think some bad people are coming to hurt you, you know? So Takeru-chan wants us to take everyone here somewhere safe where we can find out exactly what they want with you all!"

The newcomer's explanation was… simple, to say the least. Inia thought how foolish the girl must be if she wanted her to believe such clarification even for a second, yet it was Inia who felt quite foolish at this moment as she was believing it wholeheartedly.

"…How do you know my name?" That was also an important question which Inia missed until now.

"Huh? Your name is your name, right?" It was this time that Inia finally realized what the strange feelings she discerned from the red-head was.

"You… are not human… but, you're not like us…"

"Oh, that's right! I'm a super robot! Take a look at this!" With a swipe of her hand, the empty TSF behind her suddenly jumped to alive and straightened up from its kneeing position.

"It's awesome, right? I can read people's mind too, and make locked doors open, and make passwords go away and all the good stuff!" Inia didn't say a word, only because she was too amazed to remember to comment.

"…Then why do you want us…?"

"Ahaha, we're trying to protect you three, dummy! Like I told you, some bad people asked us to come and get you, but Takeru-chan didn't trust them and so we're coming here and finding out exactly what happened!" There was no way Sumika could be telling the truth, Inia didn't want to trust her.

"Will you believe us, Inia-chan? We're really trying to help."

"Please trust her. Please trust us."

"…Okay." However, somewhere within her recently healed heart. Inia recognized what true honestly was like, and the silly-looking girl that was generously offering her aid was all that and then some.

More importantly, Inia and Yuuya weren't going to make it without outside help, they both knew that perfectly. With the Americans, her former comrades and some other agencies all after the 94 Phase 3, any help was appreciated to their cause.

"Yaay! Thank you, Inia-chan! Then let's get going, I'll talk Takeru-chan to not treat you friend too—" Things had a habit of surprising Inia out of the blue on that day, a random explosion shook the earth not too far from where they were.

For a second, Inia thought she saw Sumika's expression change as she spoke into her microphone on her reddish fortified suit; then after a blink, the robot girl was smiling heart-warmingly back at her again.

"Guess we got a couple of problems to take care of, Inia-chan, would you go with Kasumi-chan? She will bring you to your other friend."

"Please come with me, Inia." Trista's previous gun was nowhere in sight.

"Okay, you will take me to Yuuya, right?"

"Yes, Takeru-san just found him. Let's go and meet up with them."

 **Tamase Miki**

 **Field**

"—Aerr, patrol pattern Echo complete. No sign of target."

"—Archangel 4, copy. Continue searching, move to pattern Charlie."

"Archangel 8 understood." Switching off her comms with a swift flick of her fingers, Miki surveyed her surroundings vigilantly while scanning with the detector in her Shiranui.

Her current post, this operation, everything in general was going pretty fast around Miki for the past few days. Takeru informing them of this mission about two days before it had to be commenced meant there was very little time for the 13th to prepare themselves.

Still, Miki was excited to be deployed again. Even if her team only graduated for roughly two weeks, it didn't change the fact that they survived a BETA attack on their own base before learning about those foes. Her and her friends trained very hard to become fine Eishis after the promotion, their effort and energy were not wasted on working themselves to the bones trying to master the controls of a TSF.

With that rationale, Miki assumed the reward for their sweat was manifested as a secret mission Takeru had entrusted them with. Sure, it was nothing fancy for the wartime soldiers. But this operation stuck the sweet spot between a boring job and a deadly suicide run, hopefully it wasn't too dangerous for the recently promoted Eishis or too pointless for them either.

"—Sector C-11 cleared, no sign of targets." It was Ayamine's voice that Miki discerned, she reported her condition quickly and went off their comms just as stealthily.

"Archangel 4 copy. Move to D-2"

The abandoned base was silent as could be, rightfully so. It hadn't even been five minutes since they landed on the base and both Takeru and Sumika had already ran off stalking their objectives, leaving Miki's team behind to look for the last HVT that had yet to be sighted.

"—Archangel 8 to 7, do you think everything will go smoothly, Kei-san?" Miki's visual communication section of her screen lid up and connected to Ayamine's camera.

"Don't know… Takeru said we should be fine."

"Ahe, hopefully so. If Takeru—"

"Cut that off now, Archangel 7, 8. We're still on mission." A warning fired by Chizuru interjected the two girls during their short chat.

"Sorry, Sakaki-san."

"Shove it." Now that was a classic outcome of their interaction.

Leaving them with her archetypal sigh, their temporary leader ceased further communication.

—

Miki rerouted her thoughts one more time before she seriously returned to her supposed duty. The night sky was spotless above her other than the gigantic moon and blazing stars that shined its luminosity down upon the ruined base, the earlier clouds they dived through have long since dispersed.

Looking down across the horizon, tall forests and shallow hills made up most of the landscape. Between all the pieces of terrestrial lid by rays of moonlight, there was a single oddity far, far out in the distance.

Miki zoomed in her scope for a clearer view on the strange happening she noticed. For others on her team they wouldn't be able to spot anything more than a few grey dots zapping in and out of forests. Since Miki was Miki, the residential sharpshooter who had eyesight better than anyone else, she knew what she saw wasn't just nature's trick, it was the trail of a dozen TSFs.

"—Archangel 8 to Archangel 4, I think there're TSFs coming our way. Distance, approximate three thousand six hundred metres." So logically, Miki reported her finding to their leader.

"—huh? Did you say TSFs, Archangel 8? We shouldn't have any—" A sudden flash of blinding light cut through the air, on a second look it was a long range 120mm shell that exploded a couple metres away from Chizuru, which brought down her counterpoint before she could make it.

"Awuga! —Shots fired, shots fired!" Chizuru recovered promptly and raced for shelter behind some buildings.

"All units move for cover!" The three TSFs scrambled rapidly and headed toward the safety of tall structures that were still standing.

"—Archangel 1 to all units, report in!" Takeru's sudden shout overtook the radio links when Miki found her own cover.

"—Archangel 2, I'm with Kasumi-chan and we know nothing. Check—"

"—agra! This is Archangel 4, we're under attack! Repeat, we're under attack! Hostile numbers, unknown! Appear to be Russian TSFs!" A few more 120mms landed all around them, blowing dust and earth high above the air.

"Archangel 2 to 1, HVT 2 secured. Requesting order."

"Archangel 1 to all units, Arc 2 will escort HVT 2 and rendezvous on my marker in sixty. I'll be heading out with Arc 3 and assessing the circumstances." The first set of orders was given to Sumika's group of two.

"Archangel 4, have your team retreat back to my position." A cool, calm and collected Takeru quickly gave out some instructions.

"—Archangel 3 understood."

"Archangel 4, copy!"

From the other side of the thick forest on top of a steep hill, the thundering of mechanical engines raced their way to Miki's ear through her sensor, a rain of dirt blew up by the 120mm fell gradually over their frames.

"All fireteam members! We're falling back! Go, go, go!" Chizuru repeated Takeru's command as she provided a quick burst of cover fire for Miki and Ayamine to escape.

The situation changed at turbo speed for the cat-eared girl and her temporary Flight. They were calmly patrolling an abandoned base only seconds ago and now just got thrown right into a battle with bullets whizzing past their heads.

"We're clear! Move away!"

—

"—Archangel 1 here, report." Takeru's black frame rode up next to Miki's and crouched down similar to herself.

After retreating to a safer location from where they were getting supressed, Miki and her team regrouped with Takeru and the others.

"—I have no clue. Those guys, whoever they're just appeared outta nowhere and shot us." Answered Chizuru in an unflustered, but clearly aggravated voice.

"Tama, you saw them, right? Tell me what emblems or signs you saw."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"Ermm… I only caught a few glimpses as well, I think that's a sword…? Yeah, it's a burning sword with some number on the side. It definitely started with the number 2 though." I was racking my brain for a few seconds over who exactly felt the need to shoot us.

"How much did you see there have, Tama? And what models were they using?"

"About at least two dozen. And I'm pretty sure they were mostly Su-37s and Su-27s." Those surely must be Russians with that kind of gear.

"Russians and Burning sword… aren't those Soviet's Zhar Battalion? Fuck, thought they were decommissioned sometime during August." That was the only link I could connect in my head.

"Archangel 3, you got the HVTs?"

"Yes, they're secured by me." Kasumi's location was pinned on my map, she stood right next to Sumika's Shiranui somewhere further in the base than us.

"What should we do, Takeru? Maybe announce our mission and ask them to retreat?" That suggestion was overlooked the second it came out of Class rep's mouth. It maybe could work if we were a regular unit, but we stood on Soviet soil without as much as a bottle of vodka for a present.

"Negative on that. —this is Archangel lead to all units, we'll be engaging incoming hostile Battalion."

"—Eeeh?" For no good reason my crew got surprised yet again.

"What? We're not here for picnic. Use of lethal force has been authorized, although let's try and keep them alive, for Mother Russia. Anyway, here's the combat plan." I then sent over some maps and drawing over the data link to teach my squad a fast lesson.

This was going to be a good fight, for those Russians. Because it was just gonna be an easy fight for us.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Author's note**

This chapter… nothing really happens, huh? No, no. It's true, this chapter is just kinda… meh. Don't worry though, the next chapter is already good to go. Just let me reap the rewards from this one and the next chapter will be uploaded before week's end.

This really makes no sense to someone who binges through the story, must be confused as to what I'm talking about… don't worry about it. Just don't even look at this part.

Before my regular BETA shoutout to my guy, I just wants to say that; while he does a great job, and I mean a great job at finding all my fuckups, he can't find them all. If you, or your dog, your cat, your grandparents find a mistake in the story. Please let me know, I'll tape your name on the chapter you proofed and the people behind you won't have to deal with my bullshit English, thanks.

So people asked me why I don't respond to reviews, the answer is… I'm a piece of shit and lazy. Unless you have a serious question, then I'll actually just PM you so that's not a case. Maybe a guess review asking a serious question will be answered here, if not. Thanks for your thought, but I really got nothing to say. You know what I mean? You like the story; I like the story, everyone likes the story so we don't have problems!

Another thing, the first review to this chapter will be the hundredth one, I'll call the guy out for fun, so that's that. (I may or may not be intoxicated right now, don't worry, it's light)

A shoutout to my newly found fact-check guy, potterharry94. Guy probably knows Japanese and helps with some of the details of this arc. Also have his own story on Muv-Luv, go check it out and you can be the judge. But more importantly, thanks to you, I can write more delusions for self-pleasure!

Finally, BETA done by chad001. You see, I tell you bro, you're beautiful like a hundred times and you won't listen. But I just say you're fat once and you remember it forever

Because elephants never forget.


	28. The undertakers II

**Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Nastassja Ivanova**

 **December 20, 2001**

 **Outside Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

"—Zhar 1 to all Battalion members, cease fire and hold your position." Following their Commander's order, twenty-nine Zhar TSFs moved to the side and off the open field in front of the base.

Nastassja inspected her Su-37 after falling in with the rest of her comrades. The Terminator was operating in optimal condition, both her rifles were full and her motor blades had yet to be used. However, the condition of her TSF didn't please her at all.

Nothing recently had been going well for the short Captain of the Zhar Battalion. First, she and her commander ran into PROMINENCE's Yuuya Bridges along with the Scarlet Twins last month. The trio were escaping from their US and Soviet pursuers. Low on supply, ammunition and fuel with nowhere else to go, the Zhar Battalion found them by accident when they were patrolling the base.

And for a reason that confused everyone including Nastassja herself, their caring commander somehow decided to assist the American kid and his followers. Furthermore, Commander Latrova was providing them with food and shelter while not even reporting the findings.

Nonetheless, her commander was everything to Nastassja and she had no chance in hell of betraying her, especially not after reuniting with her after the Ц-04 Supply Base incident.

"—Komandir, your orders?" Nastassja spoke into her mic, the uneasy sensation in her heart still being a bother.

They didn't attack other forces normally, as in they never open fired first without self-identification. For the proud Zhar Battalion of Russia to sneakily assault an unknown unit was a first even for Nastassja.

Conversely, their act was not reasonless; the unit they engaged was clearly a covert team no doubt sent to silence the American boy and his lady friends, which made it all the more unacceptable in the eyes of her commander.

"—Company A, B and C will advance in and investigate the enemy units. Company D will cover the flanks. Forward Companies, keep your eyes open for the American and the twins, their safety is priority." It was the most logical formation to take. Now that the Battalion declared their hostility through lethal means, they had to eliminate all unfriendlies on sight.

"Da! Komandir!" Altogether, the Zhar pilots responded at once with pride.

Yuuya Bridges, thinking about that man was enough to unsettle Nastassja's mood. It was completely specious for Commander Latrova, her one and only leader to care for that person to such a degree.

Commander Latrova had noticeably changed drastically after their reunion. It was unsurprising that someone betrayed by the very ideology they served would still wish stay away and forget such ethics, yet she did the opposite; Commander Latrova bore no grudge against her country, she still fought for its protection day and night.

That wasn't all, she somehow survived the aftermath of the supply base incident and met up again with the Zhars, so no matter how much she changed over the course of three weeks, Nastassja would not question the difference in someone whose sole existence was already a gift to her.

"Zhar 2, you will stay here with Company D." When Commander Latrova spoke again, her update was highly unwelcomed by the chestnut haired girl.

"Wha— Komandir! I am the leader of Company B! How can I—"

"—Tasha… please stay here… it is dangerous ahead, maybe too much so." With a worrying voice, Commander Latrova repeated her order to Nastassja over a private line.

"…Roger, —Company D, spread out and keep a watch out for hostiles!" Nastassja watched anxiously as Commander Latrova rode her machine first toward the ruins of the supply base, leaving her and trusting her to defend their backs when she confronts the invaders.

 **Fikatsia Latrova**

 **Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

The TSF was never meant to be used in stealth situations, Fikatsia understood that perfectly. So she didn't bother to conceal the noises of her two Companies as they make way into the abandoned base.

"—Zhar 15 to Zhar 1. No sign of enemy movements in area D-1, Company C is— curren— ar-ea—" The communication line was suddenly overwhelmed by stagnant noises, leaving the rest of her subordinate's sentence unheard.

"—Zhar 1, negative copy. Repeat your last."

"… —Zhar 15, Company C is moving to area E-3, how copy?"

"Zhar 1 copy that, continue searching." Fikatsia smiled inwardly at her men's slight lack of discipline.

Even if she was demoted to Major, she was still higher ranking than the leader of Company C. However, she didn't find arguing about such issues to be important for the moment, locating Bridges and the twins was much more essential.

Yuuya Bridges, thinking about that man brought great conflict to Fikatsia. She didn't expect to survive during the supply base incident, she didn't imagine she would run into her old unit once again; but her unforeseen encounter with Bridges was the single biggest shock for her after going against the Su-37.

Fikatsia understood exactly how cowardly she was acting, relying on the American surface pilot to fill the void left by her own son. It was almost too natural; Fikatsia pretended to be the mother of Zhar Battalion, she wished to be a caring mother who protects and fights for her children. Yet she clearly found her favourite in Yuuya Bridges, an American who isn't even from her motherland.

"—Zhar 22 to Zhar 1, Su-47 Berkut spotted by area E-8. Awaiting orders." The update from her team pulled Fikatsia out of her daze and back into reality.

"Zhar 1 copy. Hold your position, we're coming to you.—to Company A and B, converge on area E-8, Su-47 spotted. Do not make contact until my orders. Company C will continue searching for hostiles."

Now was not the time to consider her flaws, her Battalion needed a capable leader so she would offer them such a role model. And role models speak with deed, not empty words.

—

"—to the pilot of the Su-47, respond if you hear me. Repeat, to the pilot of the Su-47 Berkut, respond immediately!" Fikatsia along with about fourteen Zhar members surrounded a seemingly empty Su-47, her and Company A hid behind remaining buildings and lasting structures with their weapons at the ready and eyes out for abrupt movements.

The Su-47 was still without any signs of motion, its solid back faced about half a dozen barrels that was pointed towards its cockpit. With two A-97 assault cannons attached to its Mount Pylons, the Zhars were worried over the possibility of the TSF turning hostile and firings its guns.

"Bridges! Yuuya Bridges! Respond if you hear me!" Seeing her first message was ineffective, Fikatsia shouted the name of the supposed pilot of that Berkut. When no reply came for the second time, she started to get anxious at this troubling development.

Fikatsia looked over the screens of her Terminator once more, there were about seven TSF in her immediate vicinity and another seven patrolling the outside of their siege. The remains of the base cut them off from flanking around the Berkut and facing it head-on, so they were forced to only cover about a hundred eighty degrees of the angles this TSF was exposed to.

Following that, they stared at the tail end of the surface fighter for a good minute, Fikatsia gave no order to attack and no order to retreat.

She was uneasy about this entire situation; while her team caught a good look at the now disappeared invaders, they couldn't identify anything other than their models. There were three Type-94s standing on the base when the Zhars opened fire, and now they were detecting nothing in a radius of three kilometres.

Before the timer could tick down to the a hundred seconds since Zhar established visual contact with the Su-47, a little blue bot representing a member of the Zhar Battalion was approaching Fikatsia's location.

A couple of other Zhar members also turned around toward the direction of the incoming Zhar 2. From faraway, the shadow of a Su-37 rapidly moving in between buildings could be observed as it closed the distance between it and the others.

"Zhar 15, Zhar 2 is heading toward your Company. Check her status."

"—" This was the first sign of an unusual occurrence, Fikatsia's call was answered by nothing but static.

She reviewed her map for the combat area, seven dots representing Company C was stationary as Zhar 2 passed them by without stopping. She double-checked with the soldiers around her and reached the same conclusion, Company C was unresponsive during their mission.

"—Zhar 2! Why did you come here!?" Fikatsia shouted at her adjutant when she advanced closer to her than the Zhar members patrolling outside.

How Tasha disobeyed order without as much as a little warning was not making the Major's day any better. That added with the already tense atmosphere of silent subordinates was undoubtedly causing Fikatsia angst.

"—Koman-! —incom —enemy att—"

"Zhar 2! You're cutting off! Speak clearly and…!" It was this time that the shadow over Tasha's machine was finally lifted by the moonlight, and it was not a pretty sight by any standard. Fikatsia was totally speechless when the moment of realization hit, that they were not on the winning side of this battle.

Tasha's Terminator was missing both arms from its shoulders and carrying huge scraps all over its armour. A trail of gasoline and machine oil leaked and painted the path she took to desperately reach Fikatsia's position. The TSF was almost literally running on its last legs, already impressive for such a beat-up machine to have made it this far.

"—KOMANDIR! Enemy attack! They're all—" As abruptly as could be, Tasha's communication line was instantly cut off the next flash.

For one second, Tasha's TSF was still upright before Fikatsia's sensor. The next second following a shrieking scratch of metal, the machine started tilting and tipping forward until it crashed facedown onto the hard earth it used to stand on.

Accompanying the loud thud of Tasha's android was another silhouette that appeared out of thin air at where her frame used to be.

Black. The surface fighter facing Fikatsia was just that one plain colour. Inside the shadow or under the light, it didn't matter; the TSF with a blade extending from its arm sheath stared through the mechanical eyes of Fikatsia's Su-37 and straight into her heart.

This, whatever this robot was; it was a monster, that much was clear from the aura it emitted.

"…All units—" The Zhar leader was going to order her men to shoot the menacing frame, yet her throat ran dry before the next edict could be voiced.

"—OPEN FIRE on the hostile TSF!" In spite of her hesitance, Fikatsia was still responsible for the lives of her soldiers. So even if the table was slammed out of their favour, she was not giving up without a fight.

The rest of Zhar Battalion finally reawakened to the situation, all Su-27s rotated their base and aimed for center mass of the dark TSF. In their long or short years of combat, this day was the first time Zhar Battalion had ever held a number advantage opposing whatever forces they faced.

However, that was also the day when they learned head counts didn't mattered all that much.

"—Fire! Fire! Fire!"

Countless shells soared through the air in a single unbent line as they left the barrel of at least twenty-five rifles. What should have happened was the sight of that lone TSF being tore into shreds by the continuous bullets raining down upon its front, but Fikatsia was somehow not too stunned when that prediction didn't come true.

—

Everything that occurred next was a blur in the eyes of Zhars. That machine, the frame that was one with the dusk performed absolutely impossible maneuverers as it dodged the incoming sheet of metal rounds and vanished from plain sight.

"—All units! Spread out and watch for any movements! IFF is activated! Shoot anything that moves!"

"—Zhar 12! Hostile unit spotted! 3 O'clock! Moving to engag—"

"—Agra, damnit! What was that!? Did that thing jus— uwaa—!" Before a callout could be make, Fikatsia immediately lost connection to a member of Zhar who spotted the enemy fighter. There wasn't even a scream of fear as two blue dots were wiped off her map.

"Zhar 12! Zhar 1 to all units! Retreat from Area D! Pull back, pull back!" Fikatsia heightened her senses as she scanned the scene in front of her, a natural feeling of panic overwhelmed her usual calm emotions.

"—Zhar 9 here! The hostile unit is chasing us!"

A seemingly imperceptible foe pursued half a dozen of TSFs as they were pulling in full reverse, their bullets failed to hamper the advancement of the lone black unit.

"—DAMN it! Why can't we FUCKING HIT it!"

"—how is this fucking possible!? It's not even showing on our radar!"

Using the many ruins in its path as cover, the sole TSF bended itself in middle of Zhar's Company B and rained death for all those it came across.

"—move, move MOVE! He's gaining on us— URga!"

"—it's just not right! Our data link is not showing anythin—"

Fikatsia too realized the fatal tactic applied by their enemy after one of her fallen comrade mentioned it; all of their electric information was nowhere near accurate.

"—NONONO! DON'T COME ANY—"

"—9 O'clock! 9 O'clock! Zhar 10 requesting assistance— ArHHgha!"

It was screech after screech, static after static over the comms of Zhar Battalion. Their members unfortunate enough to be caught by the deadly hands of that frame were either silenced instantaneously or allowed a final scream before their demise.

Being a veteran of war herself, Fikatsia was not unfamiliar to the concept of one-sided engagements and she knew perfectly her team was facing this exact issue. Her soldiers were being slaughtered like lambs while they tried hopelessly to escape, each of the blues dots disappearing off her map meant another victim to their unseen enemy.

It was what Americans would call a total landslide, and even if Fikatsia didn't like the using of that word, she couldn't think of anything else anymore appropriate.

—

"—Komandir! Company B just got wiped! We're down to only seven TSFs!"

"—All units! Full retreat from combat area! Don't engage the hostile—" Despite their already disparaging condition, this enemy seemed to be uninterested in leaving survivors.

That same TSF covered in darkness materialized from nullity right before the seven surviving members. And as if its pilot was simply chopping up diced meat, the machine's extended blade on its arm cleaved through two Su-27s in a flash.

"Incoming! Evasive maneuvers! Hurry!" Fikatsia reacted fast enough to input an order.

One way or another, the distance the Zhar put in between themselves and their adversary was closed once again in the blink of an eye. Still using its Retractable Dagger, the deadly unit stabbed two Su-27s multiple times in secession before disappearing into the night.

"IRINA! You fucking bastard!" One of the surviving Zhar pilots who witnessed the fall of her comrade bolted after their attacker.

"Tonya! Stop! Don't break from the group!"

"Those ASSHOLES! I'll get all of the—" Her line was cut short by a sudden impact all over her frame.

From where no man was paying attention to, the Su-47 they forgot until now make a single move. It lifted the Mount Pylons on its back and fired its two assault cannons without any warning.

"—AGHhga! The Berkut! Why is it shootin—" Before the pilot of the Su-27 to Fikatsia's left could finish her sentence, a hail of bullets shut down her frame forever.

"TONYA!" Another shout echoed a bit in Fikatsia's chamber, the Su-27 of which the yell originated from dashed across the field and headed directly for the Su-47.

"Kayl! Don't rush—" By then, Fikatsia's warning was already too late.

—

As the other remaining TSF of the Zhar Battalion released its Motor Blade in one hand and firing the gun in another. He charged toward the Berkut at top speed, boosting the Jump units as much as possible.

However, the Soviet Third-Gen didn't even bother to turn around or shoot its rifles, alternatively it opted to only dodge the rounds fired by the Su-27 without looking instead. This sign of disrespect was what utterly angered the Zhar pilot to unbearable amount, he threw away the second rifle and ejected his Motor Blade in that arm as well.

As the distance between these two mechanical breasts was shortened to single digits, the Su-27 had both of its arms raised and ready to slay his hated foe. Even by the last second before his Motor Blade would come in contact with the armour of the Berkut, that frame didn't move a joint.

It was the next second, the moment when the chainsaws should have ended that machine; it attacked, it attacked to full effectiveness.

"Huh?" The third generation was gone, it disappeared in the time shorter than a heartbeat.

Obviously, the Zhar pilot didn't even catch the dust left behind by the Su-47 as it leaped into the air with incredible velocity. When its backflip was executed perfectly over the head of the Su-27, the advanced surface fighter decided to pull out its own Motor Blades as well and boost downward in a straight line towards the Second-Gen.

By the time the pilot at long last realized what just took place, the short fight had already concluded. The Berkut sliced off both of his TSF's arms with pinpoint accuracy and brutality before stabbing its legs repeatedly with the Foot-Mounted Blades to ensure its kill.

—

A drop of cold sweat dripped into Fikatsia's eye when another TSF in front of her crashed squarely downwards with its momentum. Even if her sensor told her otherwise, Fikatsia knew she was the last surviving member of the two Companies that chaperoned her.

At this point, Fikatsia was no longer trying to escape her death; she was seeking it. Everything happened so unthinkably fast that she still hadn't full processed the fact that at least two thirds of her Battalion was utterly destroyed under two minutes. It was unimaginable, entirely unimaginable.

For her to fail the age-long duty she entrusted herself in less than five minutes was devastating to the Russian Major. There was a certain hopelessness suffocating her in the cockpit of her worn-out fighter, perhaps it was the despair over her many years of service finally catching up to Fikatsia.

"Is… this over?" Her statement was directed to no one in particular.

Currently, Fikatsia surfaced her Terminator slowly and steadily between the ruins. Even if her defeat was already served in full, there was nothing wrong with bringing one of her enemies down along.

"—you must be the Commander of this unit. Surrender now, for this is the end of the line." A booming translated voice overtook her thoughts as the Zhar leader perceived a machine stepping out of the shadow calmly with a sole sword in its right hand.

The TSF was painted dark purple for reasons Fikatsia didn't know nor did she care, her only thought was fighting and killing the machine must be part of the team which annihilated her Battalion; no matter how impossible her logical part was telling her.

Feeling no words were required from the Major, Zhar 1 dropped her guns and pulled both Motor Blades from their sheath. The android before her was clearly challenging Fikatsia to a duel of blades. At this point, her reason to refuse was long gone anyway.

She activated the booster to maximum power and planned to cut right through that armour before her. Both chainsaws were spinning at an unbelievable rate, casting sparks of metal all over the field. With crazily fast movements, Fikatsia charged forward, determined as can be.

"I see you have no will to yield. Very well, I shall honour that choice and face you as is." The Purple frame took a stance, a swordfight stance that reminded Fikatsia of the nation Japan purely based on its appearance.

So Fikatsia stormed right at the surface fighter, stopping for nothing along the way. The opposing unit was still motionless after it raised its sword in a defensive posture and only waited to meet the Su-37.

Half a minute earlier Fikatsia witnessed the instant defeat of her men, now she was experiencing it herself firsthand.

As she shortened the gap enough for her to strike, Fikatsia jumped off the ground to slash her Motor Blades vertically down. That attack was dodged in a fraction of a second when the violet unit pivoted on its left leg, batted the Terminator's lower chest using the dull edge of its sword with boundless strength and sent her flying all in one smooth motion.

Like those old games with bats and runners the Americans liked so much, her Terminator went sailing from the insane power of the swing.

When Fikatsia's world ultimately stopped trembling following that attack, her unit on the ground was surrounded at gunpoint by three TSFs that she saw sometime in the last five minutes.

"—congratulations, you played yourself. How about you come out now?" It was the voice of a male that she perceived this time around, the mockery was thick in the air when the man spoke down toward the leader of Zhar Battalion.

Fikatsia surveyed around her cockpit for any means left to fight back and found none. The hit she took disabled many of her controls and lucklessly, she was not equipped with a suicide device.

So the only natural choice left for Fikatsia when she was offered a chance at capitulation was simple; she pulled out the pistol by her side swiftly and released its safety without much consideration before pointing the barrel at her temple. If she couldn't go out with her enemies, joining her husband alone was the second best course of action.

"—MAJOR! Maj. LATROVA!" A different voice called out her name when the trigger was half-pulled. It was a distinct voice from whoever defeated her, yet it was a familiar one.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"—Ahhga! You suck, Sumika!"

"—Mooou! Don't blame me for this! He just ran away when I wasn't watching!" Which was a perfect basis for me to blame her.

I'll admit having Bridges ran out on us was a bit irritating, still, this little diversion of his wouldn't change anything overall in my plan. Either way, I did promise to show him our combat proficiency, and there was nothing like this front row seat.

Sumika caught up a few seconds later and restrained him again when he showed no resistance.

"Ayye! There you go! —HVT 3 secured!"

"I'm not going anywhere." Bridges self-proclaimed after Sumika smiled brightly for locking him down.

"Oh, good for you!" She took a few steps back and focused on piloting since Bridges said nothing afterwards.

"Yuuya! Yuuya, are you okay!?" A third being ran up to where the first two stood and tripped herself once she got close enough to see Bridges' back.

"Ah, be careful, Inia-chan." Sumika kindly caught the little girl before she could knock off her teeth due to her hands being cuffed as well.

Bridges' Russian esper stared at Sumika for a few moments only to say nothing in response. Eventually she just quietly walked besides Bridges who also kept silent.

Our three TSFs; my YF-23, Meiya's Takemikazuchi and… I guess Sumika's hijacked Su-47 stood over the fallen Commander of the Zhar Battalion. To that person's credit, they fought bravely against practically impossible odds and made it entertaining for us to hunt them down.

"—Archangel 1 to Archangel 3. Sitrep, go." However, my team was the only predators this day.

"—Archangel 3. Position, sector gird J-14. Area clear. Zero causalities, zero injuries. Confirmed seven E.K.I.A. Element B awaiting orders." Professional Kasumi was professional, she told me the most important intel without wasted words.

"How was it, Kasumi? Did Tama do well?"

"Yes, she did great."

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **Non-chronological**

 **Outside Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

"—Element B on site, awaiting orders." Two camouflaged TSFs laid low far, far away from the supply base. The pair cleared couple dozen square metres and took a prone stance.

"—Archangel 1 to Element B. Sector jamming is functioning at full capacity, you are clear to engage. Neutralize all hostiles in your area."

"Element B, understood. —are you ready, Miki-san?" Kasumi saw an energetic nod on her screen.

"—I'm all good, please go ahead, Kasumi-san."

"Scanning threats… done." Kasumi focused on her own task of setting up for shooting.

"Calculating wind speed and velocity… done."

"All preparations complete." That was the signal for Miki to do her own job.

The two sharpshooters were around seven kilometres away from the Squadron of Soviets guarding the outside of ц-04. With her sights locked and rifle loaded, Miki was all prepared to pop some heads from where their enemy wouldn't expect.

"Bipod deployed, weapon is loaded and safety is off. Please paint the first target, Kasumi-san."

Kasumi clicked multiple buttons on her controls as one of the targets was highlighted and located for Miki to see.

"First target is painted, aim for headshot, fire when ready."

There was a bright red outline around a stationary Su-27 on Miki's retina projector. Kasumi's calculation told her she had the perfect condition for sniping; the wind was good, the line of sight was clear and most of all; Miki was calm and steady.

"Do you remember what we talked about the last time we sniped together, Miki-san?" In their final moment before officially beginning an engagement, Kasumi gave one advice to the cat-like sharpshooter.

"Err, yes. This's your favourite quote, Kasumi-san."

"Because I think it's very true."

"It is. —I do not aim with my hand; he who aims with his hand has forgotten the face of his father—"

Her hand gripped the trigger like the hands of a surgeon, ceased of any unnecessary movements and trembles. The scope on her monitor was deadest on the head of her unfortunate prey.

"I aim with my eyes."

Nonetheless, even more important was her sight. She stared intensely, unblinking, waiting for the right occasion to fire that deadly metal.

"When your gaze has pierced the enemy; so will your bullet."

And then the time was right, Miki shut her eyes for a brief flash before the trigger was pressed with just enough force.

"Shot out." A dim flash of muzzle was seen by nobody on the Russian side as one of their TSFs crashed to the ground with a cracked face after an entire ten seconds of bullet travel time.

"Headshot, confirmed. Target disabled. Painting second target now."

"A-actually, paint all targets, Kasumi-san. I can hit them faster that way." Kasumi glanced a bit at Miki, she knew the sniper was capable, but Kasumi didn't know her limit.

"…Understood, painting all hostiles within line of sight." Even so, Kasumi would never doubt for a second the ability of the loli sharpshooter Miki.

By this time, the Zhar Squadron had perceived their downed team member and searched frantically for the invisible shooter. They spread out and wandered cautiously as they didn't know the angle of the attack. Being noticed meant more difficult shots for Miki, but she was definitely up for a challenge.

"All targets are designated, fire when ready." This time, Miki didn't take so long to aim her gun.

"Shot out."

—

"Abdomen shot, confirmed. Target has fallen down to its side. Headshot is visible. Headshot, aim. Fire when ready."

"Shot out." A specialized EMP 36mm soared through the sky and dented the head of an already injured TSF, finishing it off when all of its electronics were fried.

"Head shot, confirmed. Target disabled, five plus one. Surveying for seventh target." Unfortunately, their last victim was out of sight.

"Negative visual on final target. Do you see it, Miki-san?"

"Ahaaa, no. I can't see the last enemy as well. Urrmm… this is like… kinda bad, right?" Kasumi noticed some hilariously large teardrops slowly forming over Miki's face.

"It's fine, I don't see it anywhere near us. With the jamming from Takeru-san's TSF, it shouldn't know where we are."

"Reallly!? Thank god, Miki is worried about Ayamine-san and Sakaki-san though!"

"Then let's warn everyone."

 **Ayamine Kei**

 **Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

"—shhh… let them pass."

"—you don't have to shush me, Ayamine! And I know the mission plan!" Chizuru shouted back at Kei who only shook her head in mock disappointment.

A big group of TSFs surfaced by where Kei and Chizuru hid in total darkness. After a short while, two thirds of that Battalion went further into the settlement and a third stayed behind.

So far, everything went according to Takeru's plan. Kei and Chizuru waited patiently as the Squadron patrolled around their cover, their directive was to standby until Takeru orders them to strike.

"—Archangel 6, check in… Archangel 6, do you hear me?"

"— …Huuuh…? Ah, ahh! This is Archangel 6, I read you! What is it?" Finally, Mikoto's half-asleep face was captured by her camera for the other two to see.

"Yoroi… sleeping much?"

"Aha… ahaha. Sorry, I got tired and fell asleep on accident." Mikoto ran her fingers through her cyan hair as a wakeup call.

"Urrrr, just… don't do that again, okay?"

"Copy."

—

"—Archangel 1 to Flight C, execute in two minutes. Method free, eradicate all hostiles."

"—Flight C copy." Chizuru answered on their secure channel as the representative for their Platoon.

Kei studied her cockpit for the latest update of the battlefield. Chizuru relocated to the opposite side of the base, on the other end of the enemy's patrol pattern.

Mikoto camped up on a tall roof which hadn't collapsed yet, one of the few that remained standing and overlooked where the Zhar Squadron was at.

Finally, herself was within a broken down hanger on the far north side of the base. The position provided her a good killing spot.

"Can you see them from up there, Yoroi?"

"Yep. I just marked all eight units in the area, sending over the data now." And the intel arrived just on time.

"…Damn, with this formation, there's no way we can take all of them on." Kei understood Chizuru's point instantly.

Their enemies were spread too thin for them to catch everyone in a surprise attack, yet they were still close enough to have visual on each other if they opted for stealth takedowns.

"Good method… I can't see one." Chizuru's expression told the same tale, they couldn't see a good way to attack without drawing too much attention.

"…Errrm, I think I got a plan we can use."

"Go ahead, Yoroi. Let's hear it."

"Everyone here should be using infrared sensors, right? Since we're using the same thing. I actually got a signal flare here and it's white too. If we can get them to all look in the middle, I can throw it and blind them for a good twenty seconds!" That plan sounded so ridiculous nobody even said anything in protest.

"Is that… how IR works?" Kei was sceptical to say the least.

"I'm sure!" Mikoto's self-confidence somehow didn't boost the morale of either teammate.

"Leader, what you think?"

"…I mean, we got to take them down anyway, right? Having you ever looked at a flare through infrared personally?" For once, Chizuru actually valued Kei's opinion enough to ask her.

"Nope… I think Yoroi is thinking flashbang."

"Hey! I know what I'm talking about! And I also have been hit by a flashbang too!"

"Wanna just roll with it, Class rep?" Kei and Chizuru shared looks back and forth for a bit until they both agreed to Mikoto's spark of idea.

"Alright, we'll go with that. But how do we get them to all look in one direction?"

"Don't worry, leave that to me." Kei offered her confidence with a plan in mind.

"Ayamine… you sure you got this?"

"I got this." From her looks, Chizuru was deep in thought for a short while.

"Fine, we only got another thirty seconds left so we'll go with that." Letting out a soft smile, Kei was happy for Chizuru's trust in her.

"Ayamine, Yoroi, you two ready?" Asked Chizuru as everyone prepared for their roles.

"Good to go."

"I'm ready too!" The temporary leader nodded after receiving two affirmations. Kei quietly dropped her assault cannon and grabbed her sword.

"We'll execute the plan in five… four… three… two… one! Move, move!"

The next second, Kei took her sword in reverse grip and raised it high over her head. Then like an Olympic javelin player, she hopped two steps forward, used the momentum from a short jump boost and threw the PB-Blade overhead with great strength from her TSF.

The sword sailed above the structures and a couple of Su-27s until it landed in the center of the Zhar Battalion. The metal weapon stuck out of the ground, leaving a heavy dent on its location of touchdown.

The sudden motion and impact was pinned on the radar of all surface fighters surrounding where it landed. As a result, almost every single frame on site focused their outside sensor on the curved object that seemingly came from nowhere.

"Do it now! YOROI!"

Another catapulted object arced across the dark night and beeped as it flew down beside the earlier blade. After a sole high bounce off the ground, this strange round container suddenly exploded in midair, right at the height of most TSFs' sensors.

A blinding flash of white dazed all pilots near the flare, while the rapid change in brightness was already making things difficult to spot, by using infrared visors, all Zhar pilots that saw the makeshift flashbang go off was denied vision for a good twenty seconds.

"Flight C move in!"

Kei leaped out of her cover following Chizuru's order to attack. With two short bursts of her rifle, the first two foes she saw were downed by bullets in their legs and arms without time to react.

Kei dashed forward rapidly and ran into another frame that was affected by their trap, she quickly disposed of it with accurate shots to the dome before boosting forward to find more enemies while they were still blinded.

—

"—huh! Was that it?"

"—that was it. Area cleared"

"— …Fifteen seconds… no fun at all."

It was a doubtlessly anticlimactic ending that greeted Kei after her third disable, because immediately after, she ran into Chizuru who took down two targets on her side with the last one being shot by Mikoto when it rounded the corner.

"That was… way too quick."

"Haha! These guys suck!" After insulting the Zhars, Mikoto hopped down from the rooftop she setup on.

"Huum… well, guess I'll report this then. Wonder how Tak—"

"—urrm… this is Element B to all u-units! All hostiles outside the base has been neutralized expect for a survivor who is heading toward Flight C!" Miki's sudden voice over the comms shocked the three Eishis a little bit.

"—Flight C copy that. Should we engage, Archangel 1?"

"—Negative, let it through. I'll deal with it personally. You three take cover and don't be seen."

"Flight C roger that." Kei, Chizuru and Mikoto only rested while the short skirmish was being finished by Takeru and the others after that.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Chronological**

"—Archangel 1 to Archangel 4, give me a sitrep."

"—Archangel 4. Position is on sector gird D-15. Our area is clear. Zero causalities and zero injuries. We confirmed eight hostiles downed. Flight C is awaiting orders." Class rep gave me a similar rundown of her progress just like Kasumi.

"Archangel 1, all copy. —to all units, those were some excellent plays out there. All hostiles have been neutralized and all their base are belong to us. Element B and Flight C will rendezvous on my location immediately."

My comms was shut off and the microphone on my suit was switched to the loudspeaker after the order was given.

"—hey! Yuuya Bridges! Running out here by yourself, you want me to shoot up this mech right now?!" Turning my attention back to our number one factor, I zoomed my camera in on Bridges who was standing under our feet.

Now we made a straightforward deal; he stays outta my way and in turn, I'll keep the Russians alive. Somehow the kid decided to hop on out and interrupt my victory speech.

"You said you won't hurt her!" Bridges shouted back at me with clear anger displayed over his face. Still, he was sane enough to control his outburst in front of my amazing robot that he wasn't controlling.

"The Zhar leader!? She'll be fine! —if the Commander wants to come out and show herself, we can discuss this like intelligent beings!" I stuck the barrel of my rifle right on top of the TSF's cockpit without stabbing it. My yell also was meant for the ear of the Zhar captain we just took down, whoever the person was.

Following my suggestion, the unit's pilot seat slowly slid out from its chest. Within it laid a female Eishi looking much older than most of my girls, she had a short blond ponytail tied to the back and blue eyes; both classic signs of her Russian origin.

"Who are you people? What unit are you from?" She asked us while calmly raising her hands above her head, apparently the leader wasn't as stupid as her men.

"All classified, lady. Let's hear your name first!" My machine still had its 36 calibre chamber aimed on her body as I demanded information.

"…Major Fikatsia Latrova of 211 Batal'on Zhar."

"Wasn't your unit destroyed in combat?" I inquired the first question that came to mind.

"We… reformed and reactivated." Her answer was enough to satisfy my curiosity so I dropped the topic.

"What is your team doing here?"

"Patrolling the region surrounding Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base." This info came out alarmingly easy.

"You're not lying to me, are you? We used non-lethal rounds so the lives of your men are at stake here!" If the Major was taken aback by either my threat or reveal, she didn't let it show.

"If what you said is true, I have no reason to deceive you, and I am willing to cooperate if you assure my subordinates' safety."

"Fine, there're three bunches of them. The ones you left in the hills, the ones just outside the base and these guys by us. None of them should be dead but they won't be able to leave their cockpits for a while." I generously announced some good news to Major… whatever she said her name was.

"I see… thank you for your compassion."

"Get on your stomach and don't move. —Meiya, take her." Abiding in order, Meiya descended her Type-00 and handcuffed the Zhar Commander. She ran a quick body check and escorted her down to ground level.

I also hopped off from my YF-23 to join the others, Sumika jogged over to greet me which only got her another chop for not watching out the prisoners. I casually walked over to where the crowd gathered, Meiya kept her eyes open for sudden movements with her gun at the ready. The three captives stood quiet as can be without looking distressed by their situation.

"Arrga, this's not the foot I wanted to start off from. Meiya, take off their handcuffs so we can speak normally." Meiya nodded before freeing the three internees we had.

"—Flight C has arrived." The roaring noise of jet engines reached my ears moments before Class rep's announcement.

None of them spoke any words of gratitude towards me for bigheartedly returning their freedom. Of course, I didn't expect any as we still had three newly arrived 36mms pointing down on the ground.

Meiya took an open spot by my right side while Sumika was to my left, I stepped forward with no hostile intent and talked calmly to the group opposite of us.

"You know this man, Major-…?" I pointed at Bridges and asked.

"Latrova, and what is your name?"

"Shirogane Takeru, that's a true name, by the way."

"You're Japanese, yes?" Maj. Latrova was clearly more comfortable commuting with us compared to the two HVTs we caught.

"Yup."

"Then Shirogane, to answer your question; I know 2nd Lt. Bridges from the supply base incident before."

"Maj. Latrova! Why are you…" Bridges spoke up to complaint about something but was waved off by the Major instead.

"—Element B on station." Kasumi's flat voice was heard on my headset, they further increased the circle and guarded the ground troops carefully.

"Then you know his current status?" She nodded slightly at me after I pointed at Bridges again.

"Well, I don't really care about you Russian regulations and stuff so that's fine with me."

"In that case, mind if I ask a question?" I motioned my hands to give her the okay.

"Is your pilot in the Su-47 not going to disembark?" It was quite interesting how that was the first thing in her thoughts.

"Oh, that? That's remote controlled." Her next expression was quite a sight to my eyes.

Maj. Latrova was collected enough to only gasp mildly with an astonished look, yet I could tell exactly how amazed she was by the inaudible words she said to herself. Those outside my line of sight were probably equally awed by the spectacle.

"Yes, an un-manned machine did beat two of your best pilots and yes, it also performed a low angle backflip from standing position."

"How is that possible…!" Maj. Latrova was starting to get somewhat upset by my declaration.

"Sumika, show them."

"Okay!" And immediately after getting consent, the Su-47 activated its boosters and skidded around for a short period. The TSF did a full circle around where we stood before coming to a stop next to Sumika.

"…I can't believe it…" Maj. Latrova proclaimed in shock, her mouth hanged slightly open with a nice expression of disbelieve to boot.

"How's the feels, by the way?"

"Ermm… for some reason, the Berkut is easier to control than other TSFs I can remotely operate. It's kinda like… I'm not the only one piloting it!" I got a remarkable answer from Sumika, she seemed doubtful to the cause behind how this unit moved better than she expected to.

Off to the sides, Bridges appeared visually disturbed by what they observed, however I wasn't too concerned by his behaviour as nothing of interest could arise from his amazement.

"How… is she doing that?" Maj. Latrova finally snapped back, she shot me a dangerous glare which I knew was futile.

"Uhuhu, classified as well. Angry?"

"Hmph, so the United Nations also got some tricks up their sleeves." Her guess of my origin was a hand I had not foreseen, but that didn't even matter in the slightest.

"Heeey, got my sponsors right, nice one!" I clapped for her in mockery.

"The UN is digging their fangs into this mess too, huh. America's property and Soviet's manpower are quite famous, all things considered."

"True, true. We also got works going on in the background, this discussion isn't for here, though." Maj. Latrova snorted at me for revealing basically nothing.

"What do you plan on doing now? Shirogane…"

"I'm a Captain, by the way. Captain of a certain UN Task Force." I offered some more information since Maj. Latrova was acting friendly enough.

"Capt. Shirogane, I don't think you plan on spending your day talking with me alone. What are you going to do?"

"Hhaa…Bridges, I know you don't trust us. But if you wanna live, come with us." Turning my attention to the other male Eishi, everyone else gave us some space to commute in peace.

"Just who exactly are you people…?" I was shot an untrusting glare by the man standing about four metres away.

The little girl behind him clung the back of his flight suit with a Yukon Flight emblem on it. As if to shield the Russian esper from potential danger, Bridges lifted his arms and pushed the girl into his back a bit more.

"Tch, we can't tell you anything unless you agree to cooperate."

"Then we're not going anywhere." I sighed wordlessly at his reluctant to work with me.

"Mou! We're trying to help you two idiots, you know!?" Sumika lashed out at our unhelpful buddies.

"Sumika, don't. Allow Takeru to speak." Meiya cut in and ceased Sumika's unprepared rant.

"—please let me talk with them, Takeru-san." It was Kasumi who suggested a new idea to test out.

"—sure, why not. Archangel 3, disembark and have a go at it."

—

"Inia… I'm sorry for what I said earlier." The first words Kasumi muttered after joining us was an unanticipated apology.

"Then why…?"

"I… really can't remember those days anymore, I'm sorry." Kasumi said with a rare hint of grief, she then lowered her head in a bow towards her twin.

"Trista… it's okay. We both found new memories… to replace the old ones." Taking a brave step out, the Russian girl held Kasumi in a light embrace. It was until half a minute later when the girls finally saw the other's eyes.

"Thank you… Inia."

Even in this age of despair, it was still heart-warming to see two long-lost sisters finally meeting and accepting each other. The tear drop that I noticed on Kasumi's face was the opinion I needed to set my mind in stone about assisting Bridges' team.

"Hurmm… you know what? Guess I should probably tell you who we are, no point holdin—"

"Inia, where is Cryska?"

That one line completely wiped away the sentimental atmosphere we had seconds before. I was a bit disappointed in my lack of brainpower to remember the missing HVT, similar to Meiya and Sumika who also just realized.

"She…"

The aspect of those two Eishis was a different sight altogether. Kasumi's twin hesitantly released her hands and tried her hardest to hold back the tears gathering in her eye socket. Bridges bit his lips with a hidden misery and casted his gaze downwards.

"Is she… I didn't sense her on our way here." Their implied message didn't take an expert to decode.

"Cryska… Cryska is—!"

"The Berkut, Cryska is in the Berkut." Finally, it was Bridges who delivered the answer I sought.

His statement brought Kasumi's sister into a sorrowful weeping. The girl clumsily kneeled down and was only supported by Kasumi's hands.

"Sumika, and you didn't feel anything wrong when piloting it?"

"I remotely controlled it! Also I told you it felt more easier to use than any other TSFs I steered with my ability!" Oblivious Sumika was still oblivious to the end.

"…Shit. Meiya, watch them. I'll go check."

"Understood, be careful."

Temporary leaving the others behind, I roped up into the Su-47's cockpit. This small cabin was actually somewhat larger than a typical Shiranui's, I would say around the same size as my Arondight if not slightly bigger. However, it was until after I saw what laid behind the seat did I understand the reason for all this extra zone.

The cockpit was a two-seater type; well, it should had been one, anyway. What replaced the usual second seat was an unnaturally large container of sorts emitting a faint red light, it fitted almost perfectly in the back exactly with no extra space to shake around.

I climbed on top of the first seat to gain a better look into the pod-like container, it had an air-tight seal lid with four lines of Russian prints on top.

"—Kasumi, sync with my camera. Translate this for me." Since she was the only one I knew who spoke Russian, I asked Kasumi as a matter of course.

"—it says 'Полное Затмение схема. Пятый—"

"In Japanese, genius." She was definitely insulting me using her first language, I just know it.

"It says 'Total Eclipse formula. Fifth objective purpose. Combat control system one. Signature; Martica Barchenowa." The last sentence was a name, almost the right one too.

"…Okay, you did say Japanese this time. But I still got no idea what this is." I scratched my head in confusion as Kasumi went off the mic for a few seconds.

"I'm sorry I can't help you, Inia won't tell me what it means."

"Another Barchenowa, huh? Whatever… be right back."

I one-sidedly concluded my connection with Kasumi because a new feature I didn't notice before caught my attention when I looked further up in the pod. There was a small transparent glass plate above where the words were. Some reflections under the window was bending the light beaming out of the container, an educated guess told me there was water inside.

I searched around and came upon a button on the side panel for draining the water, I knew because this text was coincidentally in English. At first, the pulsating liquid distorted my view of whatever object was kept inside. However, as the fluid slowly trickled down, I finally got a good at the pretty face hidden beneath the cover.

She was a sleeping beauty, a gentle crystal whose time had already passed.

"—to all units… I spotted HVT 1. Checking vitals." While there wasn't much meaning in doing that anymore, it was for the members who weren't sharing my view.

Albeit quite pointless, I placed my two fingers on her wrist, right where the vein was. At this stage, even a monkey would understand how fruitless my actions were. Because the pulseless skin felt by my fingers was the same temperature as the ice-cold snow lying over the ground.

"Update, HVT 1 is compromised. Repeat, Barchenowa is dead."

 **Takamura Yui**

 **Alaska, Yukon Base, United Nation Army Sector**

It was a soundless night for the soldiers of Yukon, the earth was covered by a third white layer of snow as if it was a blanket provided by nature itself. A high moon shined brilliantly above all, its rays glinted and mirrored off the moist ice.

Yui was by her lonesome on the balcony of her room, she couldn't catch any sleep this one night. Her mind drifted between anxiety for her paramount pilot and harmony when remembering back to the promise from an arrogant Captain.

The cold air breathed down her half-naked body as another cloud dropped crystals of glacier from high in the heavens. Even under such harsh conditions, Yui didn't bother to don any clothing thanks to the heater functioning to its full capacity.

She extended her hand and caught a single snowflake that gracefully landed in her warm palm; its elegancy and beauty was only hindered by the freezing sensation it sent through Yui's nerves.

"Yuuya… please take good care of her… for me." Yui smiled, it was a genuine smile she had forgotten for some time. For the first time in two month, Yui's future had a path leading toward a hopeful tomorrow.

Unfortunately, this moment of peace passed on all too quickly. A sudden gust of wind took away the tiny sleet she treasured on her grip, not a sign was left of it after Yui reopened her eyes.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Author's note**

When I promise you guys, I generally don't lie. This chapter is posted early because again, last chapter's ending sucked and this one ends on a relative cliff. Also because I won't be posting for at least two weeks, I want to finish the Yukon Arc first before rolling it out, unfinished work is worse than delayed work, right?

This is probably where the VN readers would want my head for the millions time, to that I say "come and get some." Yeah, canon is now officially, out the window, for the most part.

Because I'm stupid and people might misunderstand this. **Everything until Shirogane-kun intervened is all canon! Only minor, like super minor details are changed around!** So shoutout to Age for that great depression once again.

Quick explanation of TSF unit organizations, since you guys probably don't spend your lives on the Muv-Luv wiki.

Element is a 2 man, Flight/Platoon is 2 to 4, Squadron/Company is 5 to 12, Group/Battalion is 13 to 36, Wing/Regiment is 37 to 108. You can count, right?

The hundredth review is potterharry94, also known as my fact guy. But all of you people are amazing, this story really took off considering our small fanbase. You boys, and girls be awesome, thanks.

BETA done by chad001, I was going to search up a joke on reddit or something but I remembered, I don't give a fuck.


	29. The undertakers III

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 20, 2001**

 **Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia, Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base**

 _Look, dead is dead. I'm no miracle worker. What do you want from me?_

" _So there's no way we can save her?_ "

 _I honestly got nothing._ Kasumi was evidently saddened by my assertion.

The only viable method I saw was to go back in time and get involved from the start, but we all knew just how pointless that would be. The truth was that the life of one esper I never met before was not worth the same as my very successful two month.

I jumped off from the 47 and met up with my group on the ground. Nobody was screaming with joy for obvious reasons; still, this mushy mood was not at all welcomed.

"Is our HVT truly deceased, Takeru?" Meiya ran to my side and asked.

"Pretty sure, I opened the lid and ran a basic check, got nothing. We could run a few more but she ain't meeting the basic needs for survival." Hearing that, Meiya back away and silently bowed at Bridges as a show of condolence.

"Bridges, when?"

"…About ten days ago." I replied with a similar nod for his loss.

"Sorry to hear that."

"Just because she's gone… doesn't mean I'm handing over anything." Having overcame the pain of losing a loved one, Bridges' eyes burned with determination and strength.

It was abnormal thing for me to do, really. While unknown to him, I have decided to respect Bridges' will. He was a young man who could have travelled similar path as mine, a man who fought bravely for what mattered, what he wanted to protect.

"You were going to bury her… weren't you?" He answered with a gloomy dip of his chins.

"Enough of this. Tell me, just what do you want!? What does the UN want with us!?" Bridges took a solid step closer as he glared towards me, a mixture of anger and strangely; hope was what reflected of his countenance.

"…United Nations Army, Special Task Force A-01 for Alternative IV. Name's Shirogane Takeru, Captain of the 13th Squadron." It was an unnecessary risky declaration, however further misunderstanding will be too disruptive to my progress.

"—to all units, disembark and gather by me. It's more respectful to speak face to face." Each of the cockpits surrounding us opened with a uniformed hiss. One by one, my crew members descended below and stood to my sides.

"These're my team. 1st Lt. Kagami and Yashiro, 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi, Sakaki, Yoroi, Ayamine and Tamase." In their corresponding order, I pointed out each of my girls for Bridges to see and know.

"…Those names all sound familiar, who're you people?" Bridges' Japanese history needed work, couldn't really blame the guy though.

"We're here to bring you in, 2nd Lt. Yuuya Bridges. You and the Scarlet Twins, even if there's only one left." He was aggravated by my method of speech.

"But! But, we don't want to fight. We wish to conduct an investigation into the Soviet Esper Program and your desertion. The UN will guarantee your and her safety. Come with us, American's cells aren't so comfortable."

I presented him all the pieces I owned on this board. It was apparent how detrimental his current position was if things continued as is, yet he hesitated before my helping hand.

"…What will you do with Inia?" Sestina instinctively reacted when she was called. I could notice an increase of tension in Kasumi's suit when the girl in her arms pulled Kasumi tighter in a hug.

"We won't hurt her, ever." There was not a clue of menace in my proclamation, hopefully Bridges can understand how unacceptable it will be for me to harm Kasumi's family.

"…I see… let's talk somewhere private."

 **Hanger wreckage**

I surveyed around the open space in the hanger. Everyone on my team was here plus Bridges' side and the Major. Her men were still trapped in their TSFs and there wasn't much for her to complain about.

"When Cryska's esper powers started to weaken, the Soviets were planning on cutting her medication and just letting her die. I couldn't let them do such a thing…! Then the DIA struck a deal with me, the Shiranui Phase 3 for their defection." Bridges unconsciously patted Sestina's head as he spoke on, hiding the saddened feeling.

I got some boxes and crates as short-term seats for everyone before we all got around and decided to hear Bridges' side of his story first and state the verdict later.

"So I took… no, more like kidnapped Cryska from the Russian base. The alarm got tripped on our way out, they sent a bunch of personnel after us. It was one great big mess. Inia was in the middle of her esper medication so we couldn't take her along, that day was just a whole lot of mistakes in general." He spoke in a depressed manner, obviously no one was rude enough to cut in.

"We fought against my old Flight first, then some more Russians. Everybody got really pissed off at us… understandable, I guess." A bit further into Bridges' tale, a mocking attitude started to manifest in his words from accepting his loss.

"Eventually Inia was there too, she had her Prafka activated and was co-piloting a Berkut with another esper—"

"—Yuuya! Please… don't talk about that." When hindered by Kasumi's twin, Bridges stopped his explanation.

"Inia, I think we should tell them what happened."

"But why? That won't do anything for us!" Although I didn't like the girl's idea, I'll admit exposing everything to us might not do them any good.

"Still, it could just be beneficial to us all. Capt. Shirogane, you said the UN guarantees her safety, right?"

"You have my word." He eventually came out of his pondering and nodded to me as a show of mutual esteem.

"It's okay, Inia. Trust me."

"If… you think that's the right choice, Yuuya." The esper gave in to her… actually, I wasn't sure on their relationship. If I must guess, Bridges was probably closet to her as a guardian.

"I'll skip to the end, we somehow took them out with the help of the other esper. Yeah, think her name is Martica; the original owner of that pod and the Berkut. I don't wanna say this about someone who saved us, but when we opened up the pod she was in, the girl had all her limbs amputated, which was just… messed up." I seconded that silently, the Soviets always had some weird shit up their sleeves.

"If it wasn't for her breaking up the Prafka with Inia, none of us will be here right now. She even prepared extra meds for Cryska so she could live longer than what the Russians predicted, normally without medication she would die after three to five days, the podded girl really saved her there."

"Also the pod itself. She said something about it being Cryska's coffin, from the sound of it, hers was much bigger than the regular ones. They were supposed to amputate all limbs for the esper to fit, but it wasn't the case with Martica's, even though she too was missing her arms and legs. I'm iffy on the details, however it's safe to say Cryska's twin really watched out for her till the end." Even so, by the end, there was still a shortage of both meds and time for the escapees.

"It was kinda sad, we had to… cut her body out of the Berkut and leave the remains in the snow. I promised Cryska, to one day recover the corpse and bury it next to hers."

I never once during my loops got too familiar with the Soviet Esper programs, just not my cup of vodka; because that was all they drank. Besides, I wasn't too sure on the proper reaction to Bridges' tale, Kasumi never needed to shoot herself up, at least not in front of me or sensei.

"So after we moved all the way out here and away from Yukon, we got picked up by Maj. Latrova. She was kind enough to not report us to Kamchatsky Command and we stayed here for four weeks. Eventually though, Cryska still died when the drugs ran out. We put her body in the pod for preservation just as its previous owner wanted. You know what happened after, I wished to put her to rest but a good date never came." Therefore ended Bridge' summary of past events.

"Capt. Shirogane, you unit… it used to be the Phase 3 01b, right?"

"Yeah, that's right." I was pleasantly surprised by Bridges' knowledge.

"I see… yeah, that's it. Story's over."

"Question, what exactly did Barchenowa die from?" There were still some important details missing.

"The drug she took provided tumour suppressor gene for her body. It was some new-found cancer in her blood… she was also supposed to be returned to her water tanks or something, I'm not really an expert on this." Nor was I on modern medication, especially for the created humans.

"Anymore questions? If you all must know, we don't have any more plans now." The conclusion of Bridges' whole account left an unpleasant taste in everyone's heart. Another tragedy, just like so many others before it occurred in our merciless world.

"Uuu… Uuuuaaa! Th-t-that's sooo saaad!" Mikoto broke our solemn ambience with her child-like crying.

"Uuuh-auu… how could this happen…!" Along with her, Tama also joined in with her tears leaking.

"Inia… I'm sorry." Apologized Kasumi as she reached out her hand.

"Please… stay with me… Trista!" Sestina held Kasumi rigidly, not wanting to let go of her final family member.

"Okay, let's go elsewhere." Kasumi led her sister off to the side, out of sight.

"You're caught up, Captain. What'll you do now?" Bridges elevated his head and met my eyes.

"We're waiting for our transport to bring you back to Yokohama, should be here in another fifteen minutes." Half an hour of wait time was plausibly not the greatest step when we planned.

"Fine. We'll go with you." It must been after stern consideration and inner debate for Bridges to reach this conclusion. For his sake, I hoped it to be a wise one.

"Thank you, Second Lieutenant."

"If that is the case, I'll withdraw from the battlefield with my men." Maj. Latrova spoke for the first time since we sat down.

"Sure, sorry we can't provide transportation for your team."

"No, it is our sound defeat this time, Captain." Leaving those lines behind, Maj. Latrova left the hanger.

—

"Hey, hey, Takeru-chan." A sudden sweet voice fell on my ears after most of Squadron separated.

There was only the three of us currently in the hanger. Kasumi took her sister somewhere else to catch up on their lost years. The others went back to their machines for further inspection and preparation in case of combat.

"What you want, Sumika?" Only my 00 unit stuck around with me.

"Can I… go look at Cryska-san outside? It won't be long." That request caught two people off guard, Bridges and I both widened our pupils from surprise.

"You're Inia's twin's friend, right?" Bridges asked without looking directly at Sumika.

"Hu? Ah, yes." Sumika's usual cheerfulness was hampered by our saddening mood.

"Then it's fine, it… shouldn't be a problem."

"Thank you." The pink-haired girl bowed and left on her own.

—

We didn't talk much after that, Bridges and Sestina were both emotionally wounded from the death of their irreplaceable colleague.

As for me, it was almost surreal how I kept finding similarities between him and me, even when in reality such connections didn't exist.

"What are you people going to do now?"

"You mean after we bring you in?"

"Yeah."

It took me quite a while to realize I was sympathizing with Bridges; no doubt he suffered many misfortunes during his life until now, losing loved ones was hard no matter how much one tries to bury such burden. Yet he must strive forward and move on from that pain, for an unwelcoming tomorrow will still greet him by the end of this night.

"You will be trialed based on the result of our investigation. The UN will offer you a suitable position if you are to be discharged."

"How about Inia?"

"We will… use her esper abilities for experimental purposes."

"Not sugar-coating your objective, huh?"

"There's no need for that."

So it made me question my own ability, what gave me the right to erase my mistakes when others were forced to endure theirs? It was blatantly unfair; my girls were alive, and will keep on living until I grasp my happy end.

"What about the Shiranui and Berkut?"

"We're giving those to the XFJ Program since Alternative IV acquired it recently."

"Wait… really!? It got revived?"

"Our bank account took the hit, don't worry."

We were fundamentally different people, after all. My power was mine alone, it was a gift from pure luck and one that I had no cause to reject. So there was no obligation to assist others, my happy end was the only end I sought after.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Su-47E Berkut**

" _Oh? Haaallo! Were you sleeping just now?_ "

" _Hum? My name is Kagami Sumika! Nice to meet you!_ "

" _Is it uncomfortable in there?_ "

" _I know, right? I had to sleep in a pod as well and it was really terrible! But that thing is probably different from this!_ "

" _Well, we're here to take you guys somewhere safe!_ "

" _It's true, I promise! We really want to help the three of you!_ "

" _Aha! Then my guess is right! Takeru-chan can only see what's on the surface, after all! Hehehe! Baakaa!_ "

" _That's not a lot of time though, you sure it'll be okay?_ "

" _Then alright! I'll tell Takeru-chan when he comes over!_ "

 **Ayamine Kei**

 **Field**

"You guys wanna fight, huh?"

"Kei-san! Stop it!" Miki tugged hard on Kei's wrist, but the strength from the tense muscles in her arm made Miki's struggle pointless.

"You Jap bitch! This isn't your fucking Japan anymore, asshole!"

Kei's opponents stood just as furiously before her, there were four of them, all their faces strained and ready to react at the smallest movement.

When Takeru first dismissed his team, Kei and the rest went outside to check on their machines as a way of killing time. However, during that trip they ran into some Eishis of the Zhar Battalion who were all bitter over their thorough defeat. And that led to this perhaps inevitable encounter.

"Why are you guys acting like this!? We didn't do anything wrong, did we?" Mikoto pledged for her team's innocence.

"Did nothing wrong!? Are you people stupid or something!? This is our home! This is our country! You just stroll on in here and pretend you own the place?!"

"After we kicked your asses, yeah."

"Ayamine! Stop it!" Chizuru shouted to no avail.

Adding unhealthy oil to the fire, Kei provoked the Russian Eishis further. Two males in front had their veins popping on their foreheads and were taking a dangerous step forward.

"You WHORE! I'm gonna slice your cun—"

"ENOUGH! Do you people wish to continue disgrace the name of Zhar!? The commander already ordered for no man to touch the UN pilots." A surplus voice from behind the Russians called them out for attempted assault.

"Tasha! But these guys—"

"If you have time to fight with the Japanese, you should find a way to get Company C out of their cockpits. It was Commander herself who ripped you guys out of your frames."

"Tsk… suka. Let's go!" The four Zhar Eishis each took their turn and glared at Kei's team before bitterly taking their leave.

"In their place, I'll apologize for the rudeness of our men. Please do not keep this at heart." Once the others left, the remaining Russian pilot stayed behind to give Kei and her friends an apology.

"…It's fine, I overreacted as well." Kei was not so shameless as to divulge no fault of her own.

"I only dissolved this situation due to the commander's order. It would be most helpful if your team can depart from this base as soon as possible." The Russian female didn't show her face to expose her emotions, so Kei naturally assumed for her to be upset likewise.

"You're not the only one… with orders."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hanger wreckage**

"So the program is saved… thank god…" Bridges appeared relieved by my update.

"You guys made some great TSFs, I'll say that much." I was honest about the quality of their machines.

"Heh, thanks. It took some time… testing them to make sure they work properly."

"Most kills during a single deployment was you, right? Won't be long before we beat that."

"You're welcome to try and top me, not gonna be easy." It was funny to me how wrong that statement was.

"Hahaha! You'll see." Interesting that it was under the strangest circumstances where we shared a moment of peace.

I reached out my fist as a sign of friendship, Bridges displayed clear uncertainty as to the best way of replying to me.

"C'mon, man. You know you can leave me hanging, that's what you Yankees never do." That was apparently a law in America where fist bumps must be answered.

"Tch, you right about that, asshole ." Taking on a happier demeanor, Bridges bounced his fist right on my own.

"Nice, that's better. See you in thirteen, Second Lieutenant."

I got off the box-seat and stretched my joints a little. There were other matters to attend to and I still had the responsibility of safely escorting this pair back home.

"You too, Captain." Bridges didn't spare me a second look the moment I walked away.

 **Su-47E Berkut**

 _Having fun in there, Sumika?_

" _Ah, Takeru-chan! Come here, come here!_ " Sumika called to me vigorously when I reached where the Berkut stood.

 _What did you do?_

" _Mou, I didn't do anything wrong, you know? But that doesn't matter, c'mon up quick!_ " She sure was hyping up whatever she wanted to show me.

I grabbed the rope Sumika sent down and rode it up to the cockpit. She was inside sitting on the pod that contained Barchenowa, something that I didn't think either of them would praise her for, so I stood a bit farther on the lid of the cockpit.

"Urrm… what you want me to see about a dead body?"

"Ahaha! This is where Takeru-chan is a dummy! She isn't— owiiiee!" Sumika got chopped before she could reveal what gave her the right to insult me.

"You're like, really just stupid."

"Moooou! You meanie!" Sumika tried fruitlessly to hit me back only for her arms to be stopped.

"I'm a busy man, tell me what you want in twenty words." I was starting to get bored by Sumika's baloney.

"Heh! I don't need that much! Cryska-san isn't dead! That's all!" The processing units in my head almost got fried by such a statement, I was too dumbfounded to react at the tongue she stuck out at me.

"…Was that twenty words now? Let me count them… one… two…" My mind was still catching up to date on her sentence at snail's pace as Sumika numbered off her phrases on her fingers.

"…Ten… eleven! Ha, That was only eleven words, Takeru-ch—"

"What do you mean Barchenowa isn't dead?! Her body is right here!" I pushed Sumika away to reject her delusion, and sure enough, the older esper's corpse was still kept under the cover of the vessel.

"You're saying a sleeping person is dead, idiot Takeru-chan!"

"You high or something? I checked everything. She had no pulse, no breath, her body is at negative two degrees, okay?" I couldn't remember a single sign of living when I first analyzed Barchenowa, unless she was actually a sleeping beauty, the chick was long gone.

"You only say that because you can't hear her, Takeru-chan. I can hear many whispers coming from Cryska-san."

"Sumika, you might be able to live without a heart but if nothing pumps blood through a normal person's veins, it's all GG." I was totally confused by her words as she was by mine.

"Haaa? What are you even talking about? I'm telling you she's still alive, for now!"

"I can't even… how long does she have then? Huh?" I folded my hand at this point. If there was really somehow a miracle waiting to happen for this Russian, I wouldn't be the one to stump it.

"Ermm… maybe four more hours? I don't really know though, it's just a feeling."

"Sumika… answer me honestly here. Is Barchenowa really still alive?" Her absurdity would normally be too ridiculous for me to accept, yet the look in her eyes held such fortitude I just couldn't ignore.

"Yep!" A chance, Sumika promised me a chance to complete my mission.

"Is there a possibility for us to bring her back fully alive?"

"I think so, maybe."

"Then do you know how to do it?"

"Not really, sorry."

"Alright."

I returned deep into the labyrinth of my mind. I required an answer to this scenario, needed to understand everything and my best course of action. Either Sumika was wrong, and I was just wasting my time; or Sumika was right, then I couldn't just give up this easily.

"One last time, is Barchenowa alive and capable of being saved?" I grabbed her shoulders with as much force needed to show my seriousness as possible. Sumika stared me back, firmer than I ever remembered her acting.

"Yes, Cryska-san still has hope. Please don't give up, let's try and save her."

"Humm… I'll see what I can do."

 **Field**

"—Pickup 2213, negative hostile anti-air presence in your airspace, you're clear for landing on runway two-nine."

"—Pickup 2213, copy. Coming in from northeast, ETA sixty seconds." Finishing off the call with our incoming pilot, a C-130 soared above my head half a minute later.

I scheduled on calling for my team to regroup and sending our targets away aboard the plane that just landed, but as things turned out, an encrypted transmission reached me before I could carry out my plan.

"—HQ to Archangel 1, enter emergency channel 3-2. Vice-Commander Kouzuki is on the line."

"—Archangel 1 to HQ, isn't this mission supposed to be radio-silent?" I raised a very good question.

"Your mission objective has been altered, switch to the emergency channel." Couldn't fight orders.

"Archangel 1 copy, switching now." Without further ado, I hopped onto a safe signal to speak with sensei.

"—Shirogane, you caught your prisoners?" Even before her video feed was fully received, Yuuko-sensei was already talking in a restless manner.

"Yeah, I got Bridges back there. He was tryin—"

"I don't give a shit about him. The twins, Shirogane, where are they?" Sensei surely didn't know patience is a virtue.

"Right… because fuck that guy's ego. I got Sestina, but Barchenowa is a goner." Now that the camera patched through, it was wordless frustrations on Yuuko-sensei's face.

"Ugrrrha, fuck…! Just to be sure, you didn't kill her, did you? Cause I swear to god if you somehow got whatshername dead it won't be over so easily, you hear me!?" My mind was utterly bogged by sensei's uncalled reaction.

"Hey, hey! Calm your tits and explain, Yuuko. I ain't got any idea as to what you're talking about."

"Haa… right, right. Sorry, I'm overreacting here. Listen up, I need the twins, okay? We're breaking the deal with the Agency people, I need the espers more than they do." I sighed and mentally resigned to whatever Yuuko-sensei got cooked up, the light in her eyes told me she was a hundred and ten percent serious about turning on the deal we made.

"I can't bring back the dead, sensei. Unless you got a way, you are not getting jackshit." Telling her what Sumika informed me now may be unwise.

"Tsk… how did she die, Shirogane? Stabbed? Gunned down? Shot through the heart with a harpoon?" I was fairly certain she got the lyrics wrong on that one.

"Bridges said something about not getting her meds from the Russians and not being put in a water tank, not too sure on that front."

"Meds… meds… water tanks…? Ahh, I see… so that's what they were doing… where is her body then?" During that span of time, sensei figured out some secrets and was not sharing it with me like the fake friend she was.

"In the Su-47, got a LCL pod in there for her." Fairly certain oxygenized water could be called that.

"Did you check her temperature? Heart rate? Blood pressure? Anything to make sure she isn't dead?"

"Yep, yep. You're sounding just like Sumika over there—" I inwardly cursed myself for slipping up.

"What? What did she say?" Yuuko-sensei didn't even let me finish my sentence before she posted another question.

"She said the same thing, about Barchenowa not being dead."

"Huh, interesting. Go connect me to her, now." Just like that, my usefulness ran out so simply.

"Alright, sure. I'll fetch her dumbass."

—

Back to the Berkut, Sumika seemed to be creepily laughing by herself when I arrived. She quickly greeted me and was linked to our comms.

"—A-ok, Shirogane. Got off the line and go back to your girls. I need some time alone with Kagami."

"Eeeeeh? You do, sensei?"

"What the fuck, you do, sensei?" Sumika and I had close enough reactions.

"Yes, now get going. I'll call you back later." Not even a goodbye was heard, Yuuko-sensei gave me the boot without a care as I nonverbally left Sumika with her.

 **C-130 Hercules**

"Allll aboooarrd! Leet's go, you two lazy pickle heads!" Waving them an exaggerated welcome, Bridges and Sestina gave me dead stares in return when I escorted them into the cargo bay of the C-130.

"Going to Yokohama, right?"

"You got it. You two will be there before you know it." While still ambivalent to our real objective, Bridges entered the plane with Sestina and sat down next to each other.

"—Pickup 2213, permission for takeoff." The captain radioed me over my comms next.

"—negative, we'll provide air cover. Wait ten."

"Copy that."

 **Field**

"Oh, Kasumi, busy?"

"No."

"Got something to talk about?"

"No."

"Anything on your mind?"

"No."

It was absolutely possible for me to have a more productive conversation with a piece of bread; not a loaf of bread, only a piece. Has to be sliced though, unshaped bread was worse than Kasumi.

"Errr, then how's your sister?" I changed the topic to something where a more than yes-or-no answer was in demand.

"She's fine. Is there… something you want to talk with me about, Takeru-san?" The silver-lining here was for Kasumi to at least catch on my motive.

"Do you… like your family, Kasumi?" If she ever realized it, this was an indubitably trick question.

"I… don't have any family, Takeru-san. Yashiro Kasumi lives for you alone." Her affectionate declaration of love for me was alluring and saddening all at once.

"And I love you for that, Kasumi. So that means I want to give you something back too. And there's nothing I can think of except your family."

"I don't have any family. I have no use for them." The statement was like a double-edged sword, aiming to stab both Kasumi and me altogether. However, both of our hearts have long since turned to stone, rendering the words ineffective in wounding.

"Tell me this; who is Trista Sestina?" Bringing up Kasumi's old name didn't seemed to bother her at all.

"That's who I used to be, she's dead now."

"What happened to her?"

"She wasn't real, she disappeared because there was no use for her." Truth had never been easy to take in.

"I know that too. To you, family is just extra burden, people you have to get along with."

"Yes. I like Inia, I was happy to meet her again and I'll be very sad if she dies. But she is worthless to me, unhelpful emotions only gets on the way." For Kasumi, the best esper of the Soviet's alternative III. There was nothing Inia Sestina could do that she couldn't.

"Tell me, Kasumi. What feelings have you felt so far that you can proudly say belongs to you alone?"

"I love you. I love Sumika-san. I don't like carrots. I don't like hitting doors. I am happy when everyone's together and there's one more I'm leaving out." It was reasonable to be denied one secret when I knew everything else about my rabbit loli.

"I see, I see. So were you sad when Barchenowa was announced dead?"

"I was."

"How about when you made up with your twin?"

"I was glad to meet her again." Maybe only I noticed the contradiction.

"Why do you think those feelings aren't yours then?"

"Because I first learned it from Sumika-san."

"Then how about your love for me? Wasn't it carried over from Sumika as well?" Kasumi moved her mouth to speak, yet no words came over even after her lips touched and parted several times.

"I… it was. Because Sumika-san loves you, I love you."

"With those second-hand emotions, you think you have the right to love me?" My nonchalant expression altered slightly to void my face of any thoughts, the eyes glaring at Kasumi were dead.

She impulsively flinched from the drain of colour above my features. I was glaring the silver-head down like something below my level, something abnormal.

"Do you… want me to stop… loving you?" Every second I had to be cold toward her was more painful than the next.

"I don't know, Kasumi. What do you think?" To bring about my loved esper's true understanding of emotions, I had to become something that'll force out those forgotten reactions.

"I…I—"

"What will you do… if I told you to stop?" From the bottom of my heart, I believed in Kasumi. She was capable of finding her own answers, capable of remembering her old self.

So she thought and thought, trying her hardest to realize the values of being a person; the values of being alive. It was what separated us from the BETA, the three of us who were closer to those monsters than anyone else.

"I will still love you, Takeru-san. Because that's what is real about me." Like always, Kasumi never disappoints.

"That's right, Kasumi. You catch on quick. It doesn't matter what you starts out as, if there's something you feel passionate about. That joy will belong to you alone."

"Okay." The simplest replies were often the correct one.

"So I'll ask again, Kasumi. Do you like your sister?"

"Yes."

"Do you like your family?"

"Yes."

"If there's a miracle to bring your family back, will you grasp for it?" There could only be one reality for my bunny girl, it was the reality she wished for herself.

"Yes, I will. It will make me and Inia happy if Cryska can return."

—

As I was firmly set on the next step after bidding farewell to Kasumi, it shoved itself in my face by the form of another call from sensei.

"—told you I'll be back fast, Shirogane. How're things on your end?" The same video feed showed the same Yuuko-sensei back at Japan, an in-depth look could discover her hair was more raunchy than before.

"—SNAFU, just loaded the targets, nothing to report." I gave an honest record on all the things that didn't take place.

"Don't let them leave yet, they're probably good for something later."

"Sure, no worries." There wasn't a reason for me to not play along.

"Okay… alright. I finally got this all figured out, you're still listening to me, right?"

"Of course, of course. What can I pay attention to other than your sweet voice?" Yuuko-sensei laughed sluggishly at my below quality joke.

"I'm really up to something big here. If this works, our project can be even more unstoppable than ever. I truly believe that. So there's a request I need to ask you for, Shirogane. Not as only a soldier but a trusted one, a friend." The unnatural sincerity and gravity led me to comprehend the heavy weight of her desire.

"It's Christmas soon, right? Lay it on me, I like it better when people ask for their presents anyway."

"Okay, here we go. At least promise me you won't spread it if I tell you and it gets rejected."

"I promise, Yuuko-sensei. What I'll hear is mine alone." Taking another deep breath, sensei analyzed her mentality for some time, eventually she faced me again with clear resolve to unleash no doubt a colossal secret.

"I need you and your team to revive Cryska Barchenowa, and the only way to do that is by going back to the Soviet base in Yukon." Funny how everything just fell into place, as easy as snapping one's fingers.

"You have to reapply their esper preservation procedure using a medicine I lent to Kagami and their esper water tanks, I can give you more details later."

"Huh, that it? I don't see what's so bad about going there." Obviously, I knew exactly what sensei asked of me. Still, this sudden change of mood was not good for my wellbeing.

"No, you don't understand. She is a defector and your team is covert. You need to takeover Yukon Base for this to work."

—

"What'll we do now, Takeru-san?"

"…Sticking to the plan…?"

"Is there any other choice, really?"

"The fighting is over, right? Right?!"

I was bombarded by questions from four members of my team. Tama, Ayamine, Class rep and Mikoto were all resting by their Shiranuis when I approached.

"Yeeeep, we're heading home, girls. Our job is done here." They all let out a sigh of relaxation in their own forms.

"Haaa, finally we can go back." For Class rep of all people to be relieved at our impending return was shocking.

"Do none of you want to be here?" They all avoided my questioning gaze by turning their heads.

"…It's not that… but…" Tama had trouble explaining herself.

"We're not the good guys here, you know?" It was again Class rep who finally presented the group opinion.

"Why say that?"

"Well, some of the Russian Eishis were trying to attack us earlier. Calling us bad stuff before their team leader came and chased them away." Mikoto retold me the event I missed previously.

"The Zhars? They really don't wanna live if they're picking a fight with us."

"Ahh, Takeru-san acting like this is a bad influence. Ahaha…" Tama laughed tiredly at my behaviour.

"Did you beat them up in my place like I told you to, Ayamine?"

"Tried, they got away." What a good girl.

"But… it still just doesn't feel right, you know? Like we don't really belong here." Class rep certainly had a point.

"I see, so this's what you all are worrying over. Ughh, that's just dumb." The girls hid their upset looks as I said that.

"You all are soldiers, idiots! If you're feeling bad about your enemies, then what are you even doing here?"

"Still… aren't we really selfish if we're fighting for our gain?"

"Well, guess you can see that. Then again, for whose sake do you want to fight for?" I did not receive a response suiting the conversation.

"I won't fight for anyone other than you, Takeru! There's nobody else I rather fight for!" To my pleasant surprise, Mikoto showed her conviction in me.

"Good girl, I'll treat you to something nice later."

"Yaay! Takeru's the best!" She shined a bright smile towards me.

"If the rest of you have to think it over, that's alright. I'm rounding everyone up in that room over there, you all can go on ahead first. I'll find the rest and meet up later."

"Roger."

—

I wandered around the wrecked base, the prior disagreement with my team still vivid in my mind. Their thoughts were understandable; unfounded, but understandable. However, I did know where they got the ideas from.

My team only ever experienced two combat situations in their lives; first during the 12/5 incident and again during the XM3 trials incident. Both times we fought to prevent the loss of lives, not to escalate it.

Nonetheless, for this undertaking we actively sought out combat and were chasing after my goal. To a certain degree, they were fooled into participating in this operation since they were given no details regarding our objective. Only a mission outline.

Despite that, it was no reason for me to feel bad about making them fight here for me. We all had one dream in mind; save this world. So it was up to me, their leader to determine the best method of redeeming our tomorrow.

"Takeru, do you honestly believe in those words you spoke?" And that was exactly what I told Meiya.

I found her alone, by the feet of her Takemikazuchi. Both of her swords pinned to her side and the doll from Yuuhi held in her hand. She was also considering many things, no doubt.

"I do, what I told you is where my belief lays."

"Is that so. You shall know that I do not share the opinion with the rest, Takeru. For I cannot judge your action purely based on your method alone, we have discussed this previously, have we not?" She asked me without looking into my eyes. In fact, we weren't looking at each other at all, I leaned lightly against Meiya's back and she did the same to me.

"Sure did." I answered, recalling back to one of the many conversations we had.

"Then I am awaiting your result, I trust that you will earn what you deserve."

"Of course, Meiya. This world, is mine."

"Huhuhu, I do not doubt that." And there will be no tricks to cloud Meiya's eyes. If saving the world means I must be on top of it, then I shall at least build the stairs myself.

"So, you done here then?" As I said that, my hand reached behind and patted Meiya lightly on her head.

"Yes, my Takemikazuchi is fine-tuned for action on appeal."

"Good job on that. Come with me for now, there's something I have to discuss with everyone."

"Certainly."

 **Intact room**

"Goooood, this's everybody. Get the doors, Class rep." She agreed quickly and closed the pair of double doors in a small shack I found.

"So why have you gathered our team, Takeru? The prisoners are unguarded as of now." To my left, Meiya brought up the first and only topic I had in mind.

"Don't worry about them, this'll take only a minute." The team surveyed each other and went back to patiently waiting for my reveal.

"We just got new orders… no, that's not right, it's a personal demand for me. Not as the team leader this time, I want to ask you girls something as a friend and a partner."

"Let us know what you need, Takeru-chan." That was no more sound following Sumika.

"We will be conducting a special direct action operation on UN 3rd Force's Yukon Base in Alaska."

"…" This moment of shock and awe was totally understandable. Maybe lasting longer than a whole minute was annoying, so I had to remind myself I didn't have the ball in my court this time around.

"Wha—WHAAAT!?" There was not a single person in this room right now that held any composure within themselves, their blank stares which were all focused on me was intriguingly uncomfortable.

"The objective of this operation is the revival of asset Cryska Barchenowa, former Soviet Army Second Lieutenant. We will exploit the Soviet equipment located within the Soviet Army Base Б-01, which is a part of the greater Yukon Base Area."

"B-b-b-but-but why are we attacking them then!? Can't we just go and… I don't know! ASK THEM?!" As always, Class rep reacted first and fastest, inquiring me on the possibility of another option.

"I don't think the Russians will welcome either of us with open arms. She defected and we don't exist on paper, how can they let her go once we're there anyway?" From a logical standpoint, our objective could only be achieved through brute force.

"THEN WHY?! Why are we trying to revive the HVT?!"

"For this one… I actually don't know." My unreal answer brought a piece of mind to no one.

"You see, the Vice-Commander asked me this personally. And now I'm asking the all of you this personally as well. The estimated time left for Barchenowa is around four hours. Going just under Mach 1 will take us about two and a half to three hours. So I seriously need your answers now."

Again, not a word was said as each of the girls directed their gazes downward, maybe asking their shoes for the best choice.

I knew what I requested of them was the pinnacle of absurdity. To attack a military base with a Squadron of TSFs was equal to seeking death by committing mass murder; there was simply no possible way a normal team could ever dream of pulling off such a feat.

"I have reached my conclusion long ago, Takeru." Nonetheless, this team of mine was anything but normal.

"Will you go, Meiya?"

"Allow me to ask this one question. Do you believe what you are attempting is just?" It was indeed only one question she brought up when Meiya stared me straight in the eyes.

"Yes, I trust Kouzuki Yuuko's judgement. If she believes it is necessary to assault Yukon for the recovery of the HVT, then I will follow that. She works for the victory of humanity, I can promise that."

"I see, you have been my leader for months now, Takeru. I do not wish for that to alter anytime soon. Therefore, I shall accompany you along for this journey. After all, a subordinate that cannot answer to their commander's call is of no value."

Years after years, I witnessed the absolute honour Meiya held within herself; time and time again, I was surprised by her unwavering heart. So there was no need for another question, another hesitation, this girl who followed her soul had again decided to become my spear.

"I'll go too, this is also for me."

No matter how lonely someone might get, they'll always have the warmth of their family. However, for Kasumi who was born from experimental cells and created womb, some may say she had no family. They would be wrong, dead wrong.

"Yukon, right? I wonder if there's snow there for me to play!"

As unappreciative as this might make me sound, I couldn't think of a single different reply to emerge out of Sumika's mouth. There was never another option aside from obeying my orders for her. If I ever reach the end of the world, she will always be by my side.

"You three are really the A-team, huh? Us B-team can't even compete." When nobody else stated their decision, Class rep cracked a joke instead.

"C'mon now, don't say that, Class rep. When have I ever failed you? Even if it doesn't look right at the time, I always come through with the best outcome, right? Trust me, please. I need the rest of you now, just like before."

"Takeru… you're… I don't have the right word to describe you…" Looking affectionately my way, Class rep sighed. There was a mutual bond between every one of my team, it was due to me believing in our friendship that I could ask them of this.

"Hehe, that's about right. Guys, I won't force anyone. But if you refuse, then it'll just be the couple of us." I smiled back soothingly for the rest to see.

"Don't fuck with me… I'm definitely going. Then I can shoot the rest of you in the back and bring Takeru to my digs." For her resolve, Ayamine received an entertained laugh from me and me alone.

"Oooh, woow. That'll be a problem, huh? Can you just let her do as she pleases, Chizuru?"

"Alright, alright! We're going to save someone, right? Then I'll go as well!" Class rep elected to join in by using her tsundere specialty.

"Ahahaha, I'm going too! Not like we'll be killing anyone, right?" Mikoto casted her positive vote next.

"Awaaa, don't leave Miki all alone, everyooone! I'm coming too!" Finally, Tama decided to be part of the pack.

"That's my girls! I'm so proud of you all!" With a display of true kindness, I patted the heads of almost everyone around. Those who didn't want a pat were made fun of for their shy nature.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **C-130 Hercules**

"Bridges, Sestina. We got update, come out."

When Yuuya heard his name being addressed from outside the cargo bay of the Hercules, an irrefutable angst rose to his throat. Inia who was beside him slept quietly, leaning against his shoulder as if the events that just took place were of no importance.

However, Yuuya knew. The team leader outside wouldn't call for him without a good basis, and that purpose was what he grew worried over.

"Hey, Inia. They want us to go outside."

"Hamm… I'm huuuunngry." Yuuya smiled briefly at the array of cuteness before him.

"Yeah, maybe there's something out there to eat, let's go."

 **Field**

"So what do you want with us?"

Shirogane was the only one who greeted Yuuya and Inia outside the aircraft, he brought along no escorts and by the looks of it, there wasn't anyone on lookout either.

"Hmph." Without saying a word, Shirogane waved his hand as a motion for the two to follow before walking off.

 **Hanger wreckage**

The path he took them on was nothing special, it was their destination that served to surprise Yuuya.

Before him stood two machines, the only TSFs of their kind in existence. The XFJ-01 Shiranui Second Phase 3, 01a and 01b respectively.

01a, Yuuya's version was decorated in a backdrop of black and white with a little blue at specific spots on top. A total of five weapons were present; Two Type-87 Assault Cannons, two Type-74 PB Blade and while invisible, Yuuya knew it had a single Type-85 PB Knife in its left arm sheath.

Beside it stood another frame, a TSF that used to be the 01b. Its coating was something a bit different; the TSF was almost covered from head to toe in black urban combat paint, only tiny fragments had a shade of white to clearly indicate the fusion of plates.

"The Americans call this 'YF-23 Arondight, Custom'. Which sounds like something straight outta an anime and makes me wanna cry; tears of joy, that is." The Captain laughed at his terrible gag by himself for a bit before finally facing the two, a wide grin crossed over his mouth.

"When did you get the Phase 3?" Yuuya asked the first question on his mind.

"Heh, you know about the 12/5 incident?"

"Err… no." There was no memory available for Yuuya to recover.

"Welp, I ain't explaining that. Short story is the CIA made this to use when they go after you, they failed and are now currently on ice. Probably will be reorganized later."

"Wait, wait. So the CIA is out?" There was a certain shock from that update.

"For now, yeah."

"Ahh… that doesn't matter anymore." The smidgen of hope was baseless since its formation in Yuuya's mind.

"Anyway, we busted their ass and I borrowed it, permanently. While tracking this thing's background, we came upon the XFJ Program and how captivating it is, which led us to here."

"So your command is chasing us as well, huh? I'll consider it lucky that your team found us first." Whether Yuuya stated his opinion with sarcasm or not, there was no denying the possibility of a worst outcome for the duo.

"And I think your luck will continue to grow, if you choose to take the risk." Those few words caught Yuuya and Inia's attention like no other.

There was a rapid change of personality just then, it was Shirogane's attitude. Even without any evidence, Yuuya could say with conviction that the man in front of him just turned into someone different. It was like his self was a mask, and switching between two sets was as simple as falling off a log.

"…Just what exactly do you mean, Captain?"

"Yuuya Bridges, what is the one goal you have right now?"

A troublesome question was directed to Yuuya from the uncaring Shirogane of all people. There was definitely a ruse hidden somewhere between the words he spoke to Yuuya, perhaps to bring up his hope just for it to crash all the way down.

"I want to protect Inia at all costs." Nevertheless, Yuuya gave a somewhat honest answer.

"What is the one wish you want to be granted?" This question, on the other hand, was much easier in comparison.

"…" However, he could not bring himself to say it. It was too childish of a dream, too juvenile for someone his age.

"Yuuya… Yuuya wishes for Cryska to be back with us! I'm sure of that!" So in his stead, Inia replied with an answer he could never speak himself.

"Inia…! That's…"

"The dreams of people, they're motivation for us to move on forward. So we choose dreams that can push us onward, that can drive us to greater heights." Then Shirogane began to talk, with seriousness and confidence this time.

"But there is no man without regret in this world. We leave mistakes behind on our path and have no choice other than to continue, forgetting about what we can no longer change. There is a surely bravely in that, I acknowledge it."

"Wait! What are you—!?"

From the way he expressed his thoughts, Yuuya started to sense a concealed implication somewhere between the lines. It was a trap set waiting for him to bite, it was the untouchable fantasy he wasn't allowed to imagine.

"All the same, if a will to change that tragedy is strong enough, who is to say a wonder won't come along?"

"—I've had enough! Just what're you trying to say! TELL ME!" In his flash of pointless anger, Yuuya grabbed the Captain by his collar and roared at him in fury.

Shirogane, in spite of that was indifferent to Yuuya's raise of emotion. The simple Japanese man held his head high and gazed at Yuuya with unchanging eyes. His hands were by his side and there wasn't a hint of resistance that he could have put up.

"I am offering you a chance, Yuuya Bridges. A chance to brin—"

"BULLSHIT! There's no way! If it's possible, I would have tried it a long time ago!"

"That is only arrogance. You have forced yourself to believe what you assumed to be the truth."

"That's cause it IS TRUE! She died in my arms! I HELD HER UNTIL SHE STOPPED BREATHING!"

"I am not trying to contradict the past, however you cannot prove that she is dead."

By now, Yuuya was truly furious. How can the newcomer before him claim to have a way of bringing back the dead?

It was impossible, absolutely impossible. Cryska was gone, Yuuya and Inia both sent her off to the next world or wherever with a false smile pasted over their lips. So how dare somebody that he just met minutes ago claim to be able to grant a dream that Yuuya was forced to abandon?

"FUCK OFF! Why are you even saying this!? Do you fucking think you know about Cryska BETTER THAN ME?!" Yuuya lifted him higher until Shirogane's toes were barely taking the ground. Due to his rage, Yuuya didn't notice how unusually light his captor was.

"By your reaction I can say this clearly, Yuuya Bridges. You are immature."

Those were the trigger words Yuuya never wished to hear. The days when he first arrived at Yukon; the times when he disliked Japanese TSFs intensely. The same taunt Yui said to him during one of their first conversations, it was unpleasant, extremely unpleasant.

"FUCK YOU!" With a fast swing of his right fist, Yuuya aimed a punch towards Shirogane's still face.

At this range, it was impossible for a person to dodge or block a strike going at his speed, so Yuuya didn't bother to think too hard about how much strength he was putting in; because he hit with all his force.

Then there was a sensation of pulled muscle at the same time as wasted energy. He thought how the weight of his punch just suddenly disappeared without connecting to the Captain, it made no sense whatsoever. So by the time he did understand, Yuuya was already staring at the broken ceiling.

"Wow, damn I'm good!" Those were some very humiliating words to follow his defeat.

Still on the ground, Yuuya surveyed his surroundings and only saw the back of Shirogane who didn't even bother to confront his opponent. Now that Yuuya got a chance to clear his head, he quickly went over what happened in about one and a half seconds.

Shirogane was obviously ready for Yuuya's attack, so the moment his fist was about to make contact, it was blocked by the Captain's right hand. Perhaps block wasn't the right word, it was more like swipe; he pushed away Yuuya's fist away with the back of his palm.

As Yuuya's momentum carried him forward, Shirogane lend him a bit of his foot and tripped him further. Then with another knee to his stomach, the Japanese man flipped Yuuya on his front, a whole two-hundred-seventy degrees clockwise from where he started.

"Arggga… fuuuuck!" Currently too tired to continue their brawl, Yuuya picked himself off the floor and dusted off his flight suit.

"Yuuya! Yuuya! Are you okay?!" Like the caring girl she was, Inia rushed to Yuuya's side after the initial shock died down.

"Arha, I'm fine. Stumbled and fell, no problem."

"Indeed, I do not consider that a fight. What you did with Meiya was a fight, this was a mere accident." Shirogane added his own insight which Yuuya didn't feel like disagreeing to.

No matter how Inia tried to comfort him, Yuuya still felt considerably embarrassed for his outburst. Losing his cool was something that should have been buried along with his past, yet the Captain before him found a way to dig that back up; just like what he suggested with Cryska.

"Calm yourself, Bridges. On the most basic sense, you also would wish for this, no?" And that was a fact, Yuuya had his own dream. He subconsciously held onto that dream.

"Alright, explain using words I can understand. How is Cryska not dead?" Thanks to their previous little struggle, Yuuya had calmed his head immensely. That was one of the few parts he improved on after Yukon; points to where points were due.

"…Hum, you got me here. I actually can't prove it." All of a sudden, Shirogane altered to the laid-back personality of his in a blink of an eye.

"What!?" Before another wave of violence could overtake Yuuya, he first allowed Shirogane to speak when he motioned for him to relax.

"Look, I won't be able to explain everything to you. You know the red-haired girl on my team with a giant ribbon and a bunny hairpin?"

"Yeah, what about her?" The distraction was unwelcomed to their discussion, but Yuuya kept his patience and listened on.

"Yeah, she's not even human."

"Haa? What are you even—"

"No, Yuuya, it's true! Sumika isn't human! I can tell!" Before Yuuya doubted Shirogane's sanity, Inia vouched for the legitimacy of his assertion. He was also equally surprised at her for remembering the name of a person they hadn't met for an hour yet.

"This crap here has got a whole lot of classified stamps all over it so I can't speak anymore. But know that she is literally the strongest esper ever, you tell him, Sestina." Inia happily took over for Shirogane when he appointed her to communicate.

"Emm… errr… she is very… deep and… ermmm. Ah! Her colour is very powerful! That's right!" Yuuya didn't point out how unhelpful that was.

"Sumika is capable of mentally linking with TSFs and move around mechanical… wait, I showed you guys this earlier." A confused look was emitted from Shirogane and reflected by Yuuya.

"Yeah, that's why I didn't argue with you. I just didn't think she would be a robot or something like that."

"Really? Shit, my brain is crap these days."

"So what did she say about Cryska?" That was what Yuuya was much more interested in.

"Something about how she is only asleep and still has time to be saved, but that time isn't too long—"

"How much time?! How can we bring her back then?!" Shirogane showed displeasure at being interrupted, however he did not pursue the subject any further.

"About four hours left, and there's a way to bring her back; I don't know the chances, but there is a way."

"What? What is it!?" The slow pace of their conversation was running down on Yuuya's tolerance.

"I need to know if you are ready for it yet. And if I do tell you, I cannot allow to you back away." Once more, the serious mask of Shirogane was equipped back on.

"What do you mean?"

"This is a gamble, a very high-stake one at that. If you want to know the truth, you will have to carry out that truth with us. You will come along for her revival."

"Well, yeah! If you actually have a chance of bringing Cryska back, then I'm certainly going!" Unfortunately, it seemed Shirogane was not satisfied with his reply.

"No. I said this is a gamble, not a journey. There is a price you must pay for the chance, the chance of bringing her back. And if we fail, you are not getting compensation."

"In that case, what are you telling me to wage?"

"I cannot disclose that." Yuuya held back his upset when Shirogane denied him the knowledge of the potential loss.

"You must be ready to lose everything for this, there is no turning back once you hear the mission details and we can't risk having you blow it over us."

"What about Inia?"

"She must also come along." Their attention was focused on the almost noiseless Russian girl. Both Yuuya and Shirogane stared at her, one was waiting for an answer and the other was just doing it to fit in.

"If Yuuya goes, I'm also going." That was the final statement from Cryska's sister.

"Then tell me, Captain. I'm ready."

"Are you sure? Let me tell you again that this isn't a guarantee, might not even be a chance. We are chasing a miracle."

"That's all the more reason for me to join. If Cryska needs a miracle, I'll be the one to provide it. She deserves this much." Finally, Yuuya felt the resolve in his heart no longer tumbling.

Yes, this should be how it was since the beginning. Yuuya forced Cryska to escape from Yukon, to be with him and forfeit her loyalty to her motherland. Whether her blood was really on his hands or not, he cannot deny that his existence led to her eventual death.

So this will be his redemption, for both himself and Cryska. Because Yuuya knew, deep down he always hoped for a miracle, and now there was a chance for him to save her once more. Her tearful departure was saddening, so he will make their reunion all the more joyful.

Before meeting Yuuya, Cryska knew nothing of the world. Therefore, even if Yuuya's decisions had brought along an early death for her, she was glad to have met him. Yet it was different for the Japanese-American, he lost his own source of happiness, but will now venture to retain it once more.

"I know this sounds old but I absolu—"

"It's okay. I'm prepared." The second time Shirogane got cut off, he was surprisingly merry.

"Yukon, we have to go back to where everything starts, and not as visitors this time."

 **Author's note**

Here's your mistake filled chapter again, have fun with terrible grammar as always. Sorry about that, me no speak English, what you say?

Changed Martica's name from Matika. Because the wiki told me so, those guys on there are amazing, always updating constantly. If you're confused about who she is, going there and reading the page is always a good idea, the next chapter will go a bit deeper on the details of how things changed from canon to this. Although most of you don't care anyway.

By the way, I don't own Muv-Luv. If I did, I'll at least be a million dollar richer in development cost.

Quick shoutout to Endless Sorcerer , also a guy who helped me with facts, sorry for crediting you to chapters late. If you guys help with anything related to the story, I'll remember… eventually.

Next chapter will probably be two weeks away as well. I'm telling you, per week basis ain't happening, I got life to live… from time to time.

Throw a quick favourite and follow my way if you haven't already, and to everyone, thanks for reading again.

BETA done by Chad001. I think it is time to inform you of the three unwritten rules of life. They're as follows:

1.

2.

3.


	30. The undertakers IV

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 2, 2001**

 **Kamchatka Peninsula, Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base, Intact room**

Everyone was here this time, and I meant everyone.

My team, Bridges and Sestina, Maj. Latrova and some of her men. Everyone that was important gathered in the moderately undamaged hanger and were all waiting for my big announcement. The escapees changed into their fortified suits earlier, I told them they'll need it during the briefing.

"Alright, people! As some of you may know, we got a change of orders. So that means our previous plan is scrapped and down the trash. Oh, what is the new order you ask? That's a great question and also what I'll be answering now." Nobody made a sound during my less than entertaining report.

"My squad plus Bridges' Element will be conducting a special direct action operation dubbed 'Operation Moon Smasher' by Yokohama Command. Its objective is the temporary suppression of the greater Yukon Base area and revival of asset Cryska Barchenowa, who from now on will be tagged as VIP."

The only ones making an expression of shock were some of Maj. Latrova's men, she herself was more than collected and not even remotely taken off guard by my absurd statement.

"If that is the case, why have you delayed our departure, Capt. Shirogane?"

"Hey, hey! I'll get to that, just listen, okay?"

"Very well then." Maj. Latrova was certainly cooperative, if nothing else.

"This operation is also on a need-to-know base, for most of the operatives present here, anyway. So I'll go straight to the mission plan constructed by our HQ." There were no calls of disagreement.

"First, TSF assignments. My Squadron comprises of six Type-94 Shiranuis, a Type-00 Takemikazuchi and a YF-23 Custom. Bridges' Element got a Su-47E Berkut and a Type-94 Second Phase 3."

"Now logically that is enough TSFs for everyone here, however as I understand it; Bridges and Sestina pilot the same machine, leaving the Berkut empty, which is also where the VIP is located."

"Ermm… I can pilot the Berkut by myself… I think." With a little stutter, Sestina said in a quiet voice.

"I prefer if you fly with Bridges though, it's for performance and also insurance." Even if we established the trust between us and them, a little backup plan could never hurt.

"With that said, I'll have Sumika fly the Su-47E." There was a mutual understanding of my plan from everyone, save for the requested pilot.

"Eeeeh? Meee?! But my Shiranui got—" When her sentence ended suddenly, some members including me shot her a puzzled stare.

"Errmm… wait, wait, wait!" Following her request, we waited for a good half a minute while Sumika appeared to have shut her eyes and was concentrating on something.

"Ah, okay! I'll fly the Berkut!" Until she finally came back and answered positively to my instruction.

"Also, I think the Su-47 is tagged as pzX1, capitalized X." Bridges randomly brought up an unimportant fact.

"Sure, sure. I'll call it that if I remember." He only shrugged his shoulders, meaning for me to move on.

"That means we have an extra TSF. We'll use it to carry fuel and scuttle it right before we cross into Alaska's coastal waters. So hopefully nobody will run outta juice during engagement, then you're dead meat." My jokes were either terrible or the guys just weren't in a funny mood.

"And that, is the reason we still need you, Major. I'm not gonna lie, we'll be salvaging useable parts from your Battalion's TSFs."

"What?! How dare you Japanese think you can just drop in our country and take our machines!?"

"Why don't you just go in and cut them up with those big swords you're so proud of!?"

If keeping them here overtime didn't piss of the Zhars, then taking their stuff surely did. Some of the Eishis behind Maj. Latrova jumped up in protest and were clearly picking a fight with me.

"You see, right. Unless you got a TSF to fight us back, don't think you got a choice." Whoever this short-haired girl was, her futile barks were amusing enough for me to fire back.

"Tasha, Tonya. Stop. My apology for my subordinates, Capt. Shirogane."

"Ahahaha… your kids say the cutest things. Maj. Latrova, I'll overlook them this time since you are actually very helpful. Prepare us ten thousand litres of fuel loaded into four resupply containers. Along with six fully loaded A-97 Assault Cannons."

"I'll see to it." A few seconds before Maj. Latrova's men could jump up and rip me apart, she pulled them away and out of our temporary conference room.

"We have been given mandate for use of lethal weaponry, but I don't think anyone here wants to see blood just before Christmas. Luckily, for them and us; my team brought along some electrical something something intercept bullets, they're just EMP rounds."

"Oh, yeah. We talked about those during training session back in the States." A validation of knowledge from Bridges was valued.

"What did you guys talk about?"

"That they're absolute scrap shit and can't even be used to clean ass." About right.

"Ten points for this guy. And you know what? That's what we'll be using from now on."

"Ahaha, guessed that one." He gave me a quick chuckle.

"Good shit, our current inventory consists of eighteen Type-87s, a custom 87 support and my four AMWS. Around thirty mags of EMP, another forty of 36mm, full 120mm and six PB-Blades plus my two CIWS-Blades."

"For our side; the 94 Second's got two swords, two guns and a knife; magazine at around sixty-five percent. The Berkut got four A-97s at eight-one percent ammo." Bridges reported his team's loadout next.

"Gotcha, you're running quad-mount too, right?" I referred to the ability a TSF had of carrying four weapons as opposed to the regular two on the Mount Pylons.

"Yeah, so I can carry two more."

"In that case, we'll give you the two 87s on Sumika's machine with six mags of EMP and four mags of 36mm, also five mags of 120mm just in case. And another knife, can't forget that." There was no disagreement to my management so I continued.

"For the Berkut, since it uses the chainsaws I don't have to hand over swords. Mikoto, we'll make you a strike as well. Give two of your 87 with EMP rounds to the Su-47 and you can have Sumika's swords."

"Alright, sounds good!" It always sounds good to Mikoto.

"If anyone's low on 36mm, just grab the Russian's guns. That's it for management. Guess we're leaving the Zhars with one knife, they should be grateful." Some uninspired giggles echoed around me.

"For the next stage, why don't we have a discussion with my HQ, huh?"

—

Since there was no point in listening to their reply anyway, I linked my earpiece audio to a functional microphone I found somewhere earlier. After a short wave of static noises, it was Yuuko-sensei's voice that reiterated in the room.

"—c'moon, Shiroogannne! Look around the room so I can see too!" While speechless, I did follow her instruction and showed the face of everyone present with my suit camera which was linked back to Japan.

"XO Kouzuki Yuuko, everybody. Genius scientist and one of the most powerful people in the UN, or soon to be anyway." I hid my ridicule too well this time, nobody noticed.

"Huhuhu, approved intro, Shirogane. Greetings, ladies and gentlemen, I'll be your CO for this mission. Although do listen to Capt. Shirogane if you're on the ground." How nice of sensei to remember me.

"What's first on your list, sensei?"

"Give me a closer look on the twin."

"Sure." So I turned my head.

"Ara, ara… so you're Sestina Inia… no, wait. I should say Inia Sestina, it's given name first over there. Hello, little girl."

"Errmm… ni-nice to meet you t-too." Still timid, Sestina used Bridges like a shield and hid behind him from the seemingly friendly sound of the loudspeaker.

"Hihihi… let's move on then. First, what's the callsign for your Element, 2nd Lt. Bridges?"

"We… don't currently have one." Bridges revealed, which only made sense as they weren't a part of any military at the time.

"Then Idar 1 would work. That should be easy to remember and familiar." Yuuko-sensei's sense of humour was bad just as I recalled.

"Alright." Bridges agreed, there wasn't a need to argue over such topics.

"Okay, everybody. Connect your retinal screen to Shirogane's, I'll display the mission map that way." The team did as told swiftly. I assisted Bridges and Sestina with their monitors before letting sensei take over again.

"So your team will fly towards this exact coordinates right here, by the port on Norton Bay once the operation begins." What Yuuko-sensei pinpointed was a shore right between the border of the United States and Soviet Russia in Alaska.

"Due to the treaty signed between the US and Russia during the Soviet's migration, neither nation can place any reconnaissance facilities that can detect further than fifty Kilometres across the other country's land and no lower than eighty metres. You all see where I'm going with this."

"If I may speak." Meiya raised her hand to post a question.

"Uh-huh." I allowed it.

"I understand the plan to be for us to fly just outside the detection radius of either side's surveillance until we reach Yukon Base." Why did she bothered to state the obvious?

"Full marks, Mitsurugi. The plan is for you guys to NOE Flight in for approximate six… seven hundred kilometres? I'm guessing here. Anyway, once you're in range of Yukon Base's radars it won't matter anymore." For once, we received a relatively reasonable plan from Yuuko-sensei.

"Hold on here, why don't we just jam their radar with the stealth features on the Phase 3?" I actually wondered the same thing as Bridges, but saying it out loud first might make me look stupid.

"Not a bad question, while your stealth is better, it's not as good as the military radar structures, it'll still pick you up before you get anywhere meaningful." And his idea was shot down, did get a praise from sensei though; and we all know how much those were worth.

"What about after that, Vice-Commander? An estimate of the hostiles on site?" Class rep spoke up next, hoping to know the number we'll be facing against.

"Err… I'm pulling up their roster data right now. I don't wanna say this but the terrorist attack a few months back really was a great help to us. Out of the five security Battalions stationed on base, only two remains active." How rare, for the fanatic group to be of help.

"The Soviet's 11th Security Force Unit Feniks and the US's 21st Security Force Unit Hakke. The Soviet team was hit pretty hard too during the attack but got resupplied soon after, you also took down some of those guys during your getaway, 2nd Lt. Bridges. Pat yourself on the back for that foresight."

"Haaa… of course, Vice-commander… person." A tired sigh from Bridges thanks to sensei's behaviour.

"They pilot MiG-29s, twenty-seven of them in total. The American Battalion arrived on base for safekeeping after the attack so those guys are at full power, watch out for that. They fly with eighteen F-16s and F-15s, your classic High-Low setup."

"Only two Battalions of 2nd Generations, shouldn't be that bad, right?" Class rep actually thought positive for once in a blue moon.

"Well, if it was only these guys. You also got the machines from Project PROMINENCE. Your buddies, 2nd Lt. Bridges. You want to try and list them?"

"I don't think I remember them all, and no, I do not want to." This guy sure was still salty.

"The data here says a total of ten Flights of TSFs, fortunately they're not all filled. Then I'll read down the text; Flight callsign, numbers and machine." Since this information will doubtlessly become important in the future, I pulled out a small PDA and was ready to take notes.

"First is the UN: Argos Test Flight, three active members, F-15 ACTV. Imperial Royal Guard attaché to XFJ; White-Fang, one active member, Type-00 Takemikazuchi." Meiya slightly avoided her gaze even though the news came through a speaker.

"Those are all the ones you know, actually. Rest should be cannon fodder. African Union; Duma Test Flight, four active members, Mirage 2000 Kai."

"Middle Eastern Coalition; Azriel Test Flight, four active members, F-14E."

"COSEAN, Garuda Test Flight, four active members, F-18E."

"Eastern European Socialist Alliance; Graf Test Flight, four active members, MiG-29OVT."

"European Union; Slechtvalk Test Flight, four active members, F-16. Garm Experimental Flight… what assholes, everyone else is Test Flight, just these guys… anyhow, four active members, F-5E Tornado ADV. Sleipnir Test Flight, four members, JAS-39."

"Australia; Hanersy Test Flight, four active members, F-18."

"That's all the units you'll have to deal with. All in all, a total of a hundred and nine TSFs, only five of them are Third-Gens, Type-00 and JAS-39. Yeah, you guys got this." Even from across the microphone, the cynicism in sensei's statement didn't fade in the slightest.

"Wait, do you expect us to take everyone one of them out?" Somebody; it was me. I asked the million dollar question.

"Well, no. But if you can do that—"

"—ciao, everybody currently in Russia. I am here to remind you of the possible addition of a US Test Flight and a Chinese one." When sensei suddenly got interrupted, it was an acquainted voice which took over the speaking.

"AAAAhh! Jesus Chirst! What the— how the fuck did you get aboard, Yoro—" Then just as abruptly, the sound from Yuuko-sensei's side got cut off altogether.

"What… was that?" My question went unanswered as each Eishi around me looked at the others in bewilderment.

"That was strange. What did the Vice-Commander say? Yor-something?" Uninformed to the situation, Tama encouraged the team to guess at the unfinished sentence.

"I haven't got a clue, what do you think, Yoroi?" Still oblivious, Class rep directed the question to the only person with a chance of remembering her own name.

"Ermm… Yoro…? Yoro…? Yolo? I don't know. It sounded so familiar though." Ignorance was truly a bliss for Mikoto, in so many ways.

"—err, HQ to Shirogane, you still there? Hello, hello?" And then she was back, like nothing had ever happened.

"Yes I am still here, we're all still here. The hell just happened with you?" Once we re-established communication with sensei again, she was ready to proceed with the overview.

"My source is restricted, don't overthink it. Albeit we did get an update from that. Add two more Flights to the mix, Shirogane. Unified Front of China; Bao-Feng Test Flight, four active members, Jian-10X."

"What? Yifei and her team are there too?! Why?!" The most straightforward reaction came from Bridges, he immediately forwarded a follow-up question.

"Don't be surprised yet, listen to this. The second Flight is reported to be from United States; 65th Combat Training Battalion—"

"…Infinities!" Bridges mumbled rest of sensei's sentence, it was loud enough for most of us to catch.

"Guess you know them too, four active members and F-22A EMDs. Thought you guys might want to know about this one." Yeah, because I just love running into a stealth bitch surprise.

"So why… are we getting more parties again?" That was also an essential problem pointed out by me.

"I'll ask my informant here, give me a minute—" Instead of cutting the connection, sensei chose to be more wise and only muted herself.

"You know the Flights, Top Gun?" I tried to dig out some more information, could be constructive.

"Did you— did you just call me top gun?"

"What's the problem?" The expression of disbelieve he had was one of a kind.

"Didn't think the Japanese knew that one."

"It was a pretty good movie."

"Wha? Movie? What you talking about?" Right, right. That was the old world.

"No, no, don't worry about that. So do you recognize those Flights or not?" I quickly corrected the topic as it strayed away.

"Well, kinda. Leader for the Bao-Feng is First Lieutenant Cui Yifei, the team is good at CQC, Jian-10 runs with Type 82 cannons and Type-77 halberd. Watch out for these guys, Captain, they're on par with my old team." Whether Bridges' old team was capable or not, I wasn't getting a panic attack over four Second-Gens.

"As for the Infinities, their leader is First Lieutenant Keith Blazer. Since it's F-22As we're dealing with here, you probably know what to expect." I giggled out loud for his way of detailing the news.

"Hahaha. Thanks for the info, it should pr—"

"—Shirogane, you can hear me?" The sudden rise of audio was limited to my earpiece alone as sensei cut in the conversation I had.

I waved my hand to the others, letting them know the confidential nature of this call before relocating elsewhere more suitable.

"—yeah, go for me."

"It seems our DIA friends don't intend on playing by the rulebooks either."

"So just like us then."

"Exactly like us, I really wish someday we can actually stab somebody in the back without them knowing." What a sad wish indeed.

"What they up to?"

"Well, Yoroi just told me about the sudden deployment of The USN's 6th Fleet to Kamchatka Peninsula, calculated time of arrival is 0600 hours. There're also movements from the PLA side of things, but he couldn't dig that deep." Only logical. Sure, Yoroi was a spy; not a super spy.

"Damn, think they're onto us?"

"Might be, although it'll be too late now. The Test Flight they planned at Yukon could be rearguard though, or a part of the mission as well, who knows."

"Huh, you think they leaked the intel to the Chinese?"

"No clue, all we can do right now is advance as planned. If everything goes well, we won't meet them."

"That better be the case, sensei. I don't want a war with the Americans, they're still pretty scary when serious." Uncle Sam was loaded with nukes, after all. Even I couldn't hope to survive a G-bomb up my ass.

"Yeah, you're right. Let's get back to the others."

"Wait, wait. Are you ever going to tell me why this is happening?" Being in the dark for this long gave me an irky feeling and I didn't appreciate any irk in my life.

"I will, I promise. But I just don't want to get your hopes up if we do fail, this mission is a giant gamble, like I told you. Make sure to pull out if things don't go well."

"I know that already. I'll bring back an alive Barchenowa for you to play with, make sure to leave some of the fun for me, okay?"

—

"—so in other words, we're bumping the total number of potential hostiles up to a hundred fifteen TSFs, nine Third-Gens. You guys still got this, believe!" Everyone showed plentiful of respect to sensei by not sighing so loud as to be heard.

"Moving onto the actual battle part of this operation. First, this transmission never took place and I don't know any one of you if the mission is a bust. With that said, the use of lethal force has been approved of by unknown command. I'll repeat again; you have full range to execute all authority."

"—roger that." Everyone all answered.

The additional right we received from Yuuko-sensei was not a matter that could be used to brighten our days, it would be more accurate to call it a trump card. An emergency backup in case we couldn't handle the impending carnage.

"Although, if your team is successful in achieving the objective without casualties, that will make my work a whole lotta easier." Apparently, sensei's agenda also involved not slaughtering everyone we run into.

"We'll do what we can." I honestly replied.

"Let's talk strategies then. Current time is 0123 hours. The estimated time left for Barchenowa is three hours and thirty-five minutes. So the maximum time extension for this operation ends at 0558 hours." The clock was not an ally of ours.

"Depending on your speed, reaching Yukon will take from a hundred minutes to two hours. I suggest your team to get ready and leave in eight." So we were left with even less time for combat, that wasn't good.

"You'll have to refuel twice over the Pacific, I already contacted our Air Base on the west coast to fly over two C-17s with an interval of forty-five minutes. Besides, you got that emergency Shiranui for fuel too."

"Works for me." Currently, I spoke for everyone present.

"Once you're on base, there's only one objective. Revive the asset and stay alive. The approximate time for reinforcements from the nearest base to reach Yukon after they put in a call is around fifteen minutes, make sure nobody ring 911."

"Got it." I assessed the room for a different opinion; none were found.

"The furthest distance you could be discovered by is around fifty Klicks. I truly got no idea how things will play out once you're within their range. They could send all one hundred fifteen TSFs to capture you; kill you, or simply let you stroll on in and leave with a fruit basket." That was about accurate to my perceptive of possible outcomes.

"Once you're on base ground, that's where the most intense fighting will take place. I'll leave the mission directive in your hands, Shirogane. Try to keep the fighting away from Lilifort, civilian casualties will probably make this mission a Bolo. Don't do that, alright? You should mostly only be fighting over the Soviet territories anyway."

"That's fine too. What's next?" Long briefings had always been a weakness of mine.

"To revive Barchenowa, you need to find the Esper program manager. I'm transmitting the guy's profile right now, you should know him, 2nd Lt. Bridges." A tiny notification icon expanded into a full set of ID in mine and everyone else' retina display.

"Oh, yeah, would you look at this. This stone-cold Russian master-planner dude." Confirmed, Bridges knew him.

"Fella's name is Jerzy Sandek. A Captain with the Soviets and Frist Lieutenant with the UN, make sure to read the thing, could prove to be useful. You either have to find him or some nameless scientist in the Russian base, so I think your opinions might just be limited."

"How do we get him to help us, sensei?"

"Use your persuasion skills, Shirogane. We both know you're good at that." In other words, I was on my own for this one.

"Doesn't matter how you do it, just get Barchenowa submerged in the Soviet's Esper tank-ky thingy they got and filter her system of the cancer cells. Their equipment should let you do that no problem."

"So, sensei. How exactly is that gonna help her?"

"Weeell, it's kinda complicated with how the Soviets run their doll— I mean personnel. What happens for the Barchenowa generation of espers is that a flaw in their genetic coding results in insufficient level of white blood cells and low blood sugar which leads to a possible case of Hypoglycem—" Fuck, no, fuck no!

"Okay! Okay we get it! Please don't go off on my ass, Jesus. Give me the TL;DR version please." A bit displeased with my lack of patience, Yuuko-sensei clicked her tongue.

"In conclusion, body degrades overtime without meds; body degrades past limit and put into stasis coma, heart stops, blood pressure lowers, temperature lowers. But because she's created human; doesn't die yet. Cancer cells start spreading in blood; spreads too much, she dies. Not dead yet mean cells haven't reached brain, haven't reached brain means there's still hope, okaaayyy!?" Easy and simple.

"Oh, alright then."

"So then body goes into washing machine; washing machine filters her bloodstream and the physical body is functional again. After that, you have to stab her with Kagami's meds which jump starts her heart by going through a super-duper magical magic power thingy, got it?" Absolutely baffled; I was.

"Seeenseeeei! That was supposed to be a secret though!" By the mention of her medication, Sumika yelled angrily with her cheeks puffed.

"Right, right, sorry. Make sure to inject the VIP and have the Soviet run adjustments on her body functions accordingly." Ignored; what the whiny supercomputer deserved.

"Professor, a question. What're you thinking of shooting Cryska with to… you know, bring her back?" Bridges, for prominent reasons was cautious of sensei's plan.

"Sorry, kid. Maybe if they mission is successful you'll know. All this is an experiment on the elemental level I'm running here, can't tell you anything yet." Bitterly unsatisfied, Bridges nonetheless had to back down.

"I'll leave all the organization to you, Shirogane. Sestina over there should know the specifics of her old home, can you remember it, girl?" That was addressed to our recently found esper.

"Emmm, y-yes!" Sestina answered, a little frightened, but did answer.

"At the same time as a team is bringing the VIP back. We got a pickup coming for her and our two captives once we reactive Barchenowa. A C-141 is already on its way, but will take three more hours to reach Yukon."

"Hold on here. Are you putting us on a transport aircraft as well, ma'am?" Yuuko-sensei's next request didn't sit well with Bridges.

"2nd Lt. Bridges, there're procedures that need to be followed for the mission itself to take place. I hope you can understand that."

"That's ridiculous! You just told us this'll be a covert operation, ma'am! Why bother putting me away when I could be of assistance?" He shouted his notion with an angry slam on the wall beside him.

"You're asking too much, Second Lieutenant. Be glad that we're not already locking you in the C-130 outside with a one-way trick to Fort Leavenworth. This is the United Nation's covert op, not yours." With no comeback to speak of, Bridges forced down his foul mood and accepted the demand.

"Moving on. Once you get her, cover for the transport's landing and load the three new guys on the C-141 so it can leave. When you're sure the plane is safely away, your team will put the remaining TSFs into slave-mode and exit the battlefield as well."

"I have also redirected the Pacific 5th Fleet to rendezvous with your team at Port Valdez in four hours, make sure to get rid of all pursuers before evac. And then you're done, get back to base and the drinks will be on Capt. Shirogane."

"Awwa, fuck yooou sensei." It may appeared to others like I flipped myself off, but in reality, it was for the camera to capture the view.

"Ahahaha… maybe later, Shirogane-kun, focus on the mission for now. Once you come home though… there could just be a bombshell waiting for you~" Nevermind the fact that she was on speakers, sensei just very openly sexually harassed me for laughs.

"Haa… I hate kids."

"Hehehe, we'll joke later. Shirogane, take care of the rest, I'll help any way possible."

"Aye, aye, ma'am. We heard everything." I surveyed the room and only saw approving looks from the others.

"People, a final word. From beyond here is point of no return, you have nothing else if you get caught. I won't know you; the general won't know you; nobody will remember you." In other words, failure equals death. What a great turn of events.

"And the lot of you is worth more than I can afford to lose, you're all very important people who can bring great benefit not only to me, but mankind. Achieve success for this mission and you all shall be greatly rewarded. Stand and fight, Archangel Squadron, if you want others to remember you by that callsign."

"Yes, ma'am!" There was something in the air just then; determination and bravery was their names.

"Last thing, an extension line on channel S-4 for Mitsurugi and I need Shirogane on a private line. HQ out."

—

"—so you want the… what's it called again?"

"—the Полное Затмение plan."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" When did everyone started saying Russian? Was there a class I wasn't aware of?

"Awww, I thought I pronounced it perfectly though. In English, it's call the Total Eclipse plan."

Recently, discussing confidential information with sensei has been such a pain in the ass. I must have unconsciously fell into the role of the straight-man, leaving her to be the joker and making my life just that much more tiring. Maybe acting stupid like I did the first time could speed up these unproductive talks.

"And that's the plan overseen by the Sandek dude?"

"Yeah, from what the CIA gathered here; it's damn interesting, which is saying very little." It was rare for sensei to be this intrigued by anything not Alternative IV related these days.

"Why you want it then? Is Alternative IV not good enough now?"

"You jealous, Shirogane? Unfortunately, with Alternative IV out of its development phrase, there's not much I have left to do here. And since we're swimming in that dooough~ these days, I'm expanding our area of expertise into other subjects." Money really could buy happiness.

"So you just want control then?"

"Pfff, if you say it that way, makes me sound like an evil villain." One hundred percent accurate on that portrayal.

"Yeah? Man, how come I never see that side of you?"

"Even though I showed so much of myself to you? Demanding boy, Shirogane." I slapped myself mentally for falling down that obvious trap.

"What do you know about this Sandek guy?" Back on track… must pull sensei back on track.

"He's a very… let's say, egocentric person. I dealt with him when I brought Yashiro from the leftover of Alternative III that the Soviet controlled. This plan is his main goal currently and his backing from Marxist-Leninist is lacking after the twins gave him the slip. Something that can be easily changed."

"Oh, oooh. So that's how you wanna play it then?" It was becoming abundantly clear what sensei's intention was.

"No, no, no. You see, right. It's not a sellout if I buy first. The people's property belongs to the people." Alright then, not too sure what she meant by that.

"Not the politics! Don't involve me in that! I literally was forced to suicide four times in the past for political reasons."

"Really? For what?" Derailed as always, we couldn't keep a conversation going on track these days.

"Apparently banging the Shogun is not allowed."

"And… you did that three more times?"

"I thought if she gives consent over national television the government won't charge me for rape."

"What did they charge you for then?"

"Treason. And a bit of indecent exposure."

"Well, try again, maybe this time they'll get you for damaging national property." If I didn't stop her, it wouldn't end.

"Anyway, what should I say to him on site?"

"Not much, really. Do tell him the Yokohama fox is very interested in cooperation for mutual benefit, also she'll be arriving shorty."

"Hum, okay… wait, wait, what?! You're going to Yukon?" I may have caught that detail a bit late.

"Oh yeah, listen outside. Can't you hear the plane engines?"

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Field**

"—yes, yes. It is me."

"What do you mean? Will you be presenting yourself on site personally?"

"I see, then you have my everlasting thanks, Tsukuyomi."

"Hopefully not, Aneue has bountiful of responsibility as is. I do not hope to bother her with my trivial matters."

"Indeed, 1st Lt. Takamura will also be attending. She will not be of issue, will she?"

"Eh? I see no immediate complications as we do have transportation, however, are you sure this is wise?"

"Understood, if she feels strongly about this subject, then I shall not be the one to object her."

"Very well, I shall carry out this agreement. Thank you, Tsukuyomi."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hanger**

"Errm… what do you w-want with me, Capt. Tak- Capt. Shirogane…?"

"C'mon now, I'm no pedophile. Being that scared of me kinda hurts, you know? Sestina-chan?"

In the damaged hanger of the Shiranui Phase 3, I was alone with Kasumi's twin after pulling her aside from the briefing. There was something I must chat about with this esper girl and it positively couldn't be put on hold.

"Th-then what do you want with me, Ca-Capt. Shirogane?" For totally understandable reasons, Sestina was afraid of me. She stood an uncomfortable distance away and shielded her as best as possible.

"Look here, I'll first admit that I am a bad guy. I don't really care about Bridges all that much and only told him all that stuff so he'll work with me. I think you already guessed that, therefore you're this scared of me." With a timorous nod, she confirmed my suspicion.

"You… lied to Yuuya, you were going to save Cryska no matter if he agreed or not!"

And that was true, Bridges' opinion was never of concern. If he, for god knows why disagreed, then his ass will just simply be shipped back and a minus two for our fight. We never intended to rescue the VIP for his sake.

"Hum… is there anything else? I truly want you to at least be able to communicate normally with me." Having Bridges as a translator for this Russian was just too much of a pain in the ass, I wasn't fond of waiting for someone to spilt out their words.

"But-but you… are so different from anybody else…!"

"Then I'll apologize for that. Still, you need to tell me where I'm different so I can change." My reassurance was fairly effective on Sestina, she started to think long and deep about the flaw she saw.

"It's… it's because… I can't see any colour on you, Capt. Takeru. That's really scary!" Finally declaring the root of her insecurity, Sestina shouted at me for apparently being an Asian person?

"Err… colour…? Sorry but I don't really understand."

"—she means your personality, Takeru-san." Out of nowhere, a more calm, emotionless voice told me the hidden meaning of Sestina's words.

"Ah, Trista! You found me!" With a rapid change of attitude, the girl ran straight for Kasumi and gave her a big hug on contact.

"Agaaaa. And my name is not Trista, it's Kasumi." My bunny girl leaned back from the momentum but was competent enough to catch her twin with ease.

"So my personality is the problem, do I like… not have any?" While interrupting their sisterly love was not something I should be proud of, I did call dibs on Sestina for this conversation.

"I don't think Inia can sense it clearly, Takeru-san. Try changing yourself to something more… realistic."

"Humm, alright then." With my super ESP powers, I engrossed deeply within the layers of my mind and only assumed happy thoughts to satisfy the other Russian girl.

"Inia, take a look at him now. What do you see?" Kasumi pulled her sister out of their embrace and got her to pay attention to me again.

"Hrmm… it's quite a dull colour. Ah, I know! It's a counterfeit!" Damn this chick and her hyper sensitive reading.

"Then… how about this!?" I added a bit of spice such as the code 991 alarm and remembering Marimo-chan eating with another man. That was a fun time.

"Ahhh… what a beautiful colour this time! That's so amazing, Capt. Takeru! You can change your colour so easily!" Sure it was pretty, this girl was also messed up in the head.

Nevertheless, recalling my horrible memoires made Sestina happy enough to smile at me innocently like the pure child that she really was.

"You see, right. I am very lazy and don't like to show my true self often. Will you not be scared of me anymore?"

"Is that true? Then okay! We can be friends as well!" Now that I rid us of the one nuisance, Sestina spoke to me much more kindly than before.

"That's great. So we'll be deploying really soon, okay? Make sure to prepare yourself for the mission." There was an abrupt loss of topic after my initial problem got solved, hence why I told Sestina to check up on her machines.

"Ah, that's right. Trista! Let me introduce you to Misha! Priyezzhat (come)!"

"Horosho. And my name is not Trista, it's Kasumi." Ending on that dialogue, the two girls ran off to the Shiranui Second parked further back in the hanger.

 **Sestina Inia**

"Inia, who is Martica?" Inia's glittering eyes and pouted cheeks lost their light as Trista asked an unwelcoming question. She softly placed Misha away in a safe corner before staring back at her twin.

"Do you… really want to know, Trista?"

"Yes, if she is also my family, I want to remember her." When Trista admitted to the bond Inia thought was long broken, she lost a bit of her strength trying to hold back the tears in her sockets.

"…Trista! Thank you… for remembering. I'll tell you everything, close your eyes and I can show you."

"And my name is not Trista, it's Kasumi."

 **Non-Chronological**

 **A******* *********

 **October, ** 2001**

It was over, Yuuya and Cryska were the victors in their fight. They didn't win by skills, however, that belonged to Inia and Martica's team. For her and the podded esper were leading by miles when it came to a TSF battle.

"Well, we should… we should get her out, right?" Within the crouched Su-47 Berkut, Yuuya asked a question any normal person under the same circumstances would ask.

"No! You— you can't do that… please don't, Yuuya." On instinct, Inia shouted from outside the cockpit.

"She wouldn't want anyone to see her like this, Yuuya. I'll take care of it, leave this to me." Without turning around, Cryska who was closest to the sealed container in the back told him.

"But… she helped us so much, it doesn't feel right to just kill her like this." And Yuuya was correct, if Martica didn't slap Inia out of her Prafka state during their fight against Yuuya and Cryska's Phase 3, the outcome would have been vastly different. In the end, what she valued more over her orders was her family.

"There's… nothing we can do now, I'll put her to sleep. You two should go, it'll only take a minute."

"Thank you… for everything, Martica. Thank you… so much." Uncertain to the proper words for a farewell, Inia instead let her emotions do all the talking.

"Thanks, things would have ended badly if it wasn't for you…" Yuuya too, he understood the pain far too well.

"Let's go, Inia. Cryska will do the rest on her own." Leading Inia by her tiny hands, Yuuya backed out of the cockpit and planned on heading down for the ground.

"—HAaaa—! So hazy… ha… hahh… it hurts…!" Unbelievably, one way or another, a somewhat familiar voice was transmitted through the speakers on the walls of the pilot seat.

"Wha—! Martica! Stop! You can't!" The first person to react was Cryska, followed by Inia and Yuuya soon after. The esper they thought was almost dead had a few more final breaths.

"Don't… talk…! Over me! Ha— haa… there's still… something left… Cryska. And we don't… have… any time left!" In a tone best described as haggard and dying, Martica spoke out fragmented sentences while inhaling painfully amongst each word.

"Cryska… your left, small cabinet— open it… now!" Darting her eyes to where her twin mentioned, Cryska reached into a tiny case and pulled out an even smaller pocket bag.

"This is…! Did you… take it before leaving?" Inia leaned in next to observe whatever object that caused such a shocked expression to be present on Cryska's face. After seeing it, Inia couldn't help but be just as surprised.

"I— don't need… meds anymore… Sandek... doesn't know." In recorded history, that was the first time any esper addressed 1st Lt. Sandek strictly by name only.

"Why…? It… won't matter too much." Obviously, even with additional injections, Cryska's days were still numbered if she doesn't return back to the tanker pods.

"No…! Live… a day longer… an hour longer… a minute longer…! Live… for me, Cryska."

"Martica…! I… I—" Cryska leaned down on the esper pod as she forced out the broken words. Her twin sister, her family was beneath that icy, metal plating. Martica was only a switch flip away, and yet she couldn't be any farther. If Cryska just looked a tiny bit higher on the cover, she could see her face, but she didn't dare do such a deed.

"Haha— arack— haaa-haaa-haa— don't be surprised… yet. This pod… is… unfittingly big… can you see?" Lifting her head, only now did Cryska realized the unnatural size of Martica's pod. It was much larger than necessary, the espers who went in were only limbless bodies, after all.

"Then does that mean—!"

"Don't… waste your dream— on me, Cryska. I'm already… dead." Her hope shut down instantly, Cryska again was struck by grief.

"I'm so sorry…"

"Don't be— I should apologize… all I can give you… is your insurance… and your coffin." Not only Cryska, Inia was also alarmed by the phrase Martica uttered next.

Could it be done? That was all Inia thought as Cryska froze speechlessly, unable to fully comprehend.

"You don't mean—!"

"Sorry… but it does fit… I tested… personally before surgery." The sole person hiding his perplexity was Yuuya; and who could blame him for not knowing the workings behind the Soviet esper programs, even Inia didn't know the full details.

"Why… are you giving me all this!?"

"There's… still hope… my dear sister… for you… I want to believe in miracles."

"But then you will have to be…! We have to unplug you!"

"So you should do it now… while I can still… curse your name, hehe— open the lid… Cryska… there's nothing to hide." That day, Cryska was introduced to the love from her sister, something she didn't think existed.

"I am… so sorry." Slowly, Cryska extended her quivering finger as she threw two switches on the side of the pod; one for draining the water, other for exposing the content.

Like a tragic accident, the morbid curiosity of humans cannot be withheld by willpower. Inia stared intensely at her disabled older sister, her eyes unblinking as her mind captured and printed every image, every angle of Martica's deformed body.

At the shoulders, her arms ended. Below the groin, there were no legs. Martica had no aspect; her face was dull without a hint of sensation. She was no longer alive; Inia could only reach that heartbreaking conclusion from what was witnessed. The voice speaking to them might as well be her will.

"Jesus… this… ain't right." Yuuya could only say so much without offending the others, thus he kept himself quiet.

"Cryska… there's no time. Kill me… and unplug the body." Her only request was virtually impossible for her twin to carry out. Virtually… impossible, but must be done.

"Thank you… for everything, Martica. Even you, have given me something I don't deserve." With tear-soaked cheeks, Cryska continued her weeping as she pulled back on the slide of her Makarov.

"Идио́т (idiot)… you're gonna shoot me…? In here…?" Confused, Cryska's glance jumped to Inia and Yuuya quickly before going back to her sister.

"Then what…?"

"The bullet… could damage the pod… use a knife… I even have one for you. Look under." Taken aback for the countless time, Cryska hesitated sorrowfully about the cruel method she must enact on her loved family.

"Don't waver now… my dear sister… kill this corpse… and live to see the future… your future." Resolute was Martica, the poor esper who was at her life's end only had one demand; to be sent off by that she treasured.

"But what future is ther—"

"You must… believe! Because a miracle… will come!" At that moment, Inia realized; Martica didn't have any prove, all she had was faith.

"Thank you… really. I… I love you, Martica." There was no time left for her to vacillate. Cryska's twin only had one wish, if she couldn't even be ended by her own blood, then for what reason had she lived this long anyway?

"Heheheh, so sentimental… Cryska… know that… I hate you too…" Recognizing it to be the last words she will ever speak, Martica shut her eyes and awaited the inevitable. Save for one forced facial difference, nothing else moved.

Martica shined Cryska a smile, it was the weakest smile she had ever seen; with the tips of her lip barely even bending upwards, calling this a twinkle was nothing but insults for happy people anywhere.

"I'll live… so please watch over me, sister." Still, that gesture made Cryska happier than anything else, it showed Martica's trust in her; because the podded esper believed, Cryska was strong to finish what she herself started.

Understanding herself and Martica's final will, Cryska drew the NR-40 kept under the pilot seat. Its blade was sharp, definitely sharp enough to do the job.

"Proschaite (Farewell)."

In one swift motion, the taking of another's life was far too easy. The knife held in both hands by Cryska was stabbed straight into Martica's chest, the edge skilfully missed all her ribs and only tore apart essential tissues needed to live.

In one swift motion, Martica's heart was pierced by the cold, deadly blade as its wielder cried out silently in dejection. One final drive using all her strength, Cryska propelled the knife all the way in until it hit the back of her ribcage. Ever so slightly, Martica's body jerked upwards, the pain of being killed was something anyone will ever only experience once; and it was her turn just then.

Having done it personally, Cryska carefully pulled the dagger from the fatal wound she administered a single second ago. Its tip was still wet with warm blood of her kin, a little gush of red followed after the weapon and spilled just a tiny amount out from the gash and over her breast.

She had done it, Martica was dead. She died agonizingly so Cryska could prolong her own life, For how long, nobody can say.

"I… am so sorry." Cryska repeated those words, over and over again.

—

"We should go, we already wasted too much time."

"But—"

"Let's go, Yuuya. This is Cryska's decision, please respect it." Tugging on Yuuya's suit, Inia gazed kindly at the American.

"…Are you sure you're okay with this?"

"There's not that many options, this is what she would've wanted." Cryska said coldly, trying her best to not transform her dried tears into wet ones.

The pod was cleaned out now; empty, devoid of any living being. Because its only occupation was recently killed and removed so she could be dumped in the wild like garbage.

The fact was that the trio had no time to dig a grave, they had no resources to hold a funereal. Consequently taking the most logical step there was, Cryska asked for her twin's body to be casually left to rot under the snow.

"We have to leave, Yuuya. I'll fly the Berkut, we have to leave Alaska or they'll catch up anytime." No allies, no reinforcements, the escapees were truly on their own for this one.

"Cryska… I promise to one day come back and properly give her a burial." All Yuuya was capable of doing was merely using words of reassurance, he had no power as of now; nothing to comfort Cryska with.

"That'll be nice… bury us together, please."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Chronological**

 **Hanger wreckage**

"Ossu, Kasumi, you back first?"

"Yes, Inia's… bear was mildly interesting." That was a good way to say it. Thanks to the tear marks under Kasumi's eyelids, I didn't need an IQ of over 9000 to guess what had took place.

Since Kasumi was the only one I sent out my greetings to, the single possibility was for Sestina to have stayed back in the 94 Second.

"Already then, everything is good to go?"

"Yes, Sumika-san just finished programing the Su-47." By programing, what she meant was probably just brute forcing her way through the system until it worked as Sumika intended.

"She installed the XM3?"

"Yes." It probably didn't take any effort for her to do that.

"Crap, I still need her meds though."

"Here you go." From a pocket which definitely wouldn't fit this injector, Kasumi pulled it out anyway.

"Well, let's go." There was no reason to remain here now, we both had TSFs to tend to.

"I'm sorry… for what Inia said, she doesn't know… what you went through."

"And she won't need to. I did say let's go, correct?"

"Yes."

 **Field**

"Thank you for your assistance, Maj. Latrova."

"It's fine, Capt. Shirogane." The outside air blustered through my messy hair, causing it to flail randomly by the wind's will.

I was standing before Sumika's Shiranui together with the Russian Major. By this time, the surface fighter had its weapon system and melee halberds removed, on its Mount Pylon were four supply containers full of fuel.

"I know me saying this just sounds haughty but, thanks for the goods."

"We all have our duties, I do not blame you for defeating my Battalion. These materials should serve to pay you back for sparing the lives of my men." Maj. Latrova placed a much higher value on her subordinates than her orders, if we weren't so rush for time I might just find this respectable.

"Still, I do feel bad for just kinda robbing your Company."

"Don't mind it, we'll treat this as an official engagement with unknown faction. However that does mean your presence here will be reported." I didn't think we could get away without being told on; the only alternative was to kill everyone on site, which wasn't how I wished to operate.

"Yeah, go ahead, we're both soldiers."

"—Takeru, all preparations are finalized. 2nd Lt. Bridges and Sestina have gathered the Shiranui Second by us." My radio jumped to life for the purpose of transmitting Class rep's update.

"—Arc 1 copy, coming now." I gave her a sweet and short reply.

"Leaving, Captain?"

"Indeed, Major. It also seems like your men have just reached the limit to their patience as well." Following my line of sight, Maj. Latrova noticed many of the Zhar members staring hatefully toward me with a single girl coming closer by the steps.

"Capt. Ivanova, what is it?" The newcomer was acknowledged by her commander.

"Komandir, will the UN team be withdrawing now?" Without as much as a look my way, the young Soviet spoke to her Major alone.

"Yep, yep. We're leaving now. So that means you can finally relax and not have to be on guard for any movements." Maybe I was simply too tired, but my failed insult carried no sarcasm with it.

"I see." That was all the chestnut haired girl said to me for the rest of that year.

"Good luck on your mission, Capt. Shirogane."

"Hopping out."

—

"Everyone here?!" I shouted in a boisterous voice to collect my team's attention.

"Yes, sir." A quick headcount told me my Squadron was all prepared to launch, plus Bridges' Element of two were also good to go.

One final meet up before we all embarked on the upcoming tedious travel, I had the team surround me with their TSFs for the purpose of having everyone listen to my beautiful speech.

"First things first; Maverick, have this." Once Bridges was aware of my presence, I chucked him a flash drive from an impressive distance away.

"Who the hell you calling Maverick? And this is for?" Just as dramatically, he snatched it out of the air like a cool guy.

"We call it the XM3, it's a new OS. Try it out, pretty sweet stuff for your piloting." Since this will probably be his last time riding the Shiranui Second anyway, I gave him a nice farewell gift as sensei never forbade me from spreading some joy.

"Alright, I'll run through it with JIVES on our way over." He speedily accepted it and pocketed the device somewhere in his fortified suit.

"And also this, try not to use it." For the second item, it was a commonly seen 9mm pistol.

"Don't worry, my fingers are good." He acquired the gun with little effort and holstered the piece by his legs.

"Now I think about it, is there anything I really got to say? Like, does anyone have a question or something?" All I saw were looks of denial. Fortunately, my squad was all intelligent beings who understood our mission plan.

"Then let's not delay it any longer. Current time is 0129 hours, the VIP got just under three hours if there's still a chance." Which was true in the case that we seriously wanted to revive Barchenowa, and we did.

"One last thing; Kasumi, how do you say 'for Mother Russia' in Russian?"

"Captain, for real?" Bridges charmed me with a nice sense of humour.

"C'mon now, it just makes me laugh."

 **Nastassja Ivanova**

What Nastassja was witnessing couldn't make her anymore furious, the Japanese insulting her home was too enraging to endure.

"You butchered it, Takeru-san. That was terrible."

"God… Russian is hard as fuck."

Nastassja bit her lower lips with all her might to conceal the burning fire of hate that would not douse out, no matter how she tried to calm her mind. In fact, it was until the taste of blood ran wildly in her mouth did Nastassja realize how much damaged she inflicted upon herself.

"Then a simple battle cry will be fine, give me something, Kasumi."

"Ura."

"…Nevermind, asking you was a mistake. You killed the mood."

"Good. Let's please go now, Cryska is waiting."

"Fine, fine. Embark and move out, bitches!"

"Haa… yes, sirrr~"

—

"Komandir… I have to ask… why did you let that man and his team push us around so willingly!?" Once the ten TSFs crossed over the night sky, Nastassja's emotional floodgate lastly broke down and her wrath had nowhere else to go other than on her loving commander.

"Tasha… when I faced the Scarlet Twins during the BETA attack, I honestly thought that I was going to die. However, luck… or maybe the will of some higher being decided against my demise and saved me with a miracle. I'm still not sure which it was to this day."

Despite Nastassja's more-than-harsh attitude, Commander Latrova still spoke with a soothing demeanor. Instead of an expression similar to her own, what Nastassja noticed was a faint smile over the commander's features.

"That, and plus the fact we used to face death on a daily basis, I believe myself to be experienced enough to say this to you; Tasha, you're still young, the years before you are far; you have sufficient chances to live your life."

"Komandir, what are you saying…?"

"Being alive is really something great, you have to treasure it well. It's because I value your guys' lives and my own that I decided to cooperate with that man. I told you many times, Tasha, I belong to everyone of the Zhar Battalion." The words dropped by her commander were easier to understand than Nastassja expected, it was on the most basic level, a modest confession.

"Commander Latrova… was that man, really that dangerous?" Her question went unanswered as Maj. Latrova pulled her in for a hug.

"I have never met anyone with eyes like his, those eyes did not belong to a human. It was too abnormal for someone his age. It was as if to him, the lives of others only had worth equal to sand." By Commander Latrova's hint, Nastassja was starting to perceive the same notion.

She recalled the two times when he spoke while staring her down, the anger within her make Nastassja blind to the light of that man's eyes. Now she remembered clearly, the way he looked down on her was not something she could ever forget.

"He… is really not… normal." Nastassja was just starting to feel it, an unstoppable sense of fear.

"I'm sure the Captain will eventually be marked in history, a name people will remember for ages to come. The death he has seen outweighs anything I have ever known, the hidden emptiness behind his mask is something that should not be uncovered." That was the wholehearted truth.

"If I were to describe him with a simple title... unscrupulous, he is an immoral saviour drained of honour and virtue."

 **Author's note**

Wohoo, spring break yaay! Maybe I can actually get some work done during this time! But not really, since I'll be drowning in video games once more. Wooohoo!

From now on I'll be adding some short omake at the end of a short chapter, kinda like the radio drama you'll get in the Chronicle games. They could be canon or not, some could take place in an Extra-like world. If it doesn't break the plot I'm currently writing though I should treat it as canon, look forward to it is all I'm saying. Those parts won't be betaed by my man so more terrible English is unavoidable.

Not much else, thanks for reading and stuff.

BETA did from chad001.


	31. Turn around, every now and then I

**Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **03:01 AM**

 **Pacific Ocean**

"Are ya ready kids~!?"

"~Aye, aye Captain!"

"~I can't hear yooouu~!"

"~AYE, AYE CAPTAIN!"

"OOOOO~oooooooooooooohhhhhh!"

There was something… totally abnormal occurring over their comms link for about two minutes now. Yuuya could feel the irregularity like getting a brain-freeze after taking a bite out of a big chuck of ice-cream, so it was quite upsetting that he could not solve this headache.

"~Who lives in a pineapple under the sea~!?"

"~SpongeBob Squarepants!"

There was just something… not right.

"—Capt. Shirogane, is our current speed maintainable?"

"Absorbent and yellow and poro— Bridges? That you?" Shirogane came out of his singing session and reacted to Yuuya's query.

"Yeah, I'm thinking of putting the 94 Second on auto and trying out the new OS you gave me."

"Okay, no problem. At current velocity, we'll reach Yukon in another hour. You can test out the XM3, shouldn't be an issue." With the Captain's permission, Yuuya flipped a few switches on his control panel and allowed the system to take over.

"Inia, are you good to go?"

"Yes! This new OS sounds pretty fun!"

"Cool, let's try it out."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **03:15 AM**

"~SpongeBob squarepants~ SpongeBob squarepants~ SpongeBoooob~! Squaaaaarepannnts~! Lalaadadalala~!" Finishing off on a joyful high-note, the couple of us who enjoyed a relaxing song laughed softy into our mics.

"—so Capt. Takeru, did you have fun singing over the public channel?" Our popular killjoy Class rep cut in with her usual dose of salt.

"Hey, I wasn't the only one!"

"Yes, yes. You five must been having a ton of fun, right?" Class rep's declaration wasn't directed to just me; Tama, Mikoto, Sumika and Ayamine were all relishing in the pastime.

Our current position was somewhere smack out over the Pacific Ocean. A peek into my rear-facing camera showed the exact same view as my front-facing ones, hence I reached the conclusion that the ocean didn't have jackshit to offer in terms of entertainment.

"—Takeru, I am still dissatisfied with your unwillingness to teach me the lyrics."

"Welp, can't blame me if you don't have a childhood." Like that, Meiya's complaint got overruled by me and the wave of laughter following my retort.

"Why're you people singing in the first place? Isn't that very improper for us?"

"What's wrong with taking a break, I spent the past thirty minutes discussing tactics with everyone."

"Heerr… whatever, I don't care anymore." Class rep's baseless rigidness disappeared once she recognized the argument with me was pointless.

"—Yukon~ Yukon, we're going on adventure~!" Sumika may have had the most wrong impression about our mission compared to anyone else.

"We're not going there to play, woman! There're things we need to do!"

"Naaaah! That's what an adventure is! I can't wait to try out this new machine!" The Eishi of our newly obtained Su-47 said back.

As I turned to view the Berkut soaring to my left, Sumika continued on about how excited she was to see the land of another country in so long. However, what interested me more was the machine she rode, the same frame that contained Barchenowa's body as we flew.

"So, do you like the Berkut, Sumika?"

"Yeah, yeah! It's soo strong!" That was as vague as her preferences came.

Su-47 Berkut, the Soviet's experimental third generation TSF designed to be their ultimate machine of the twenty-first century. Together with the American's F-22A and our Type-00, the three fighters formed what people called the 'big three' of Third-Gen. A lot of threes around here, I noticed.

The onc personally piloted by Sumika right now was subtitled as the pzX1; from what Bridges explained to me, this unit was specifically designed for espers to control. Albeit whether Sumika could be included in the same category as the Russian espers was still undetermined.

" _How's Barchenowa, Sumika?_ " Having the rest of my Squadron hear that controversial statement was unnecessary.

" _She told me not to worry about her and fight to my best ability! The shaking won't affect her, she said!_ " Since I couldn't speak to corpses, or what should be corpses; there wasn't a point in disagreeing to that.

Anyway, one of the most impressive things about the Su-47 was its weaponry; with Spike Vanes covering most edges on the frame and its infamous twin Motor Blades on each of the arms, not to forget the feet mounted blades that were often seen as a cheap strike; overall, Sumika was pretty much decked out in armour.

The pure crimson paintjob of the Berkut stood out against the bottomless black of the ocean from below and the casted light of sliver from above. Those ice-blue LEDs sparking on different parts of the body blocks appeared as its numerous eyes, scanning for her next prey which will fall to her blades.

"Everyone else good?" I asked for a more board update.

"—system check, all green." Kasumi gave me the condition of her frame instead of her own.

"Nothing wrong here, a bit tired but fine." Class rep who was in our chat since the beginning submitted a more relaxed overview.

"Is 2nd Lt. Bridges unavailable as of this moment?" Strangely, Meiya asked for the American that was testing out my XM3.

"Nope, he's trying out the OS. Probably be back in thirty."

"I see, please inform me of his return." Although Meiya was for unknown reasons curious about Bridges, it was nothing for me to be concerned about so I simply agreed and moved on.

"Gonna take a nap, that okay?" The Ayamine projected to my retina was fairly sleepy from the looks of it.

"Yeah, sure. Anyone else needs a break?"

"Oh, oh. Then I'm gonna sleep as well!" Mikoto was too energetic to be actually worn out, then again, her appearance could be very deceiving.

"I'll take a short break as well, Takeru-san." The last person was Tama who also sought an intermission.

"That's fine, put your machine on auto-pilot and be ready to respond if alarm rings, Archangel 1 out." The ride was still long, we were only one third of the way to Yukon.

However, just like rollercoasters; the higher we went up, the faster we go down.

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **03:32 AM**

 **Alaska, Soviet Base Б-01, Command center**

"Kapitan, we just received a call from Kamchatsky Command. They wish to address you personally."

"At this time? Very well, patch them through."

"Da." The officer by the control clicked a single button and the earpiece equipped by Sandek connected to the caller.

It was unusual for the Far East military command to want a communication line established this late into the night. Normally all of their reports were filed and kept at around eight fifteen, every twelve hours. Knowing this, Sandek decided the matter at hand must be an important one, too important to wait for the next day.

"—Comrade Capt. Sandek, it has been a while since we last communicated."

"—Indeed, Maj. Konev. It just happens that nothing of importance required my attention after the Ц-04 Supply Base Incident, so I was not given a chance to speak with you." Sandek's completely emotionless delivery caused the man across the ocean to laugh heavily.

"HaHahaha! No matter, I have something of interest that I'm sure you will like to know."

"Then if you don't mind sharing the information."

"Yes, yes I shall. I myself just now received a report from the 211 Batal'on Zhar, they have ran into a highly dangerous unit of unknown origin which was active on the supply base." That intelligence in itself was no ground-breaking surprise for Sandek.

"As I am sure that you know, the dolls you recently lost also happened to have inhabited in the ruins of Ц-04. Now I have left them to their own device seeing that this is not my jurisdiction, but I do feel that informing you is necessary." Still expressionless, Sandek said nothing outwardly about how the espers were addressed.

"You have my gratitude, Comrade Konev. What is of the situation now?" There was another much softer chuckle in the ears of Sandek this time.

"They have disappeared, Comrade Captain. Along with your expired dolls."

"I see. Is that all?"

"One last subject, the Zhar Battalion has engaged with the unknown unit… and the result is their loss. All twenty-nine surface fighters have been disabled." The Polish-born Captain easily picked up the seemingly incorrect choice of word.

"You said disabled?"

"Yes, not destroyed. All twenty-nine members of Zhar are still alive and well, save for their pride." Immediately, Sandek calculated mentally the possible methods of how the attackers achieved such a feat.

"Did the Unknown use electrical signal interceptor rounds?"

"I believe so, it is quite amazing to take down a Battalion using what the Americans consider as expensive toilet cleaners. The Unknown also did it without taking damage." While the Captain said nothing out loud, he was actually laughing inside.

"What is their number?"

"The report said there to be eight TSFs, however their number appeared to have increased by their departure." This was when the two Soviets were reaching the end of their talk.

"Where are they heading?"

"I think you already know that, Comrade Sandek. It is time for the toy to be returned to the toy box."

"…Naturally, the custodian has his own job to do." Ending their chat in a nonsensical exchange of hints, Sandek one-sidedly terminated the link.

"You two should get ready, your family is finally coming back." That suggestion was directed to nobody in front of Sandek. Instead, two figures standing by the entrance of the command center stood at attention.

"Are… Inia and Cryska coming back, sir?" One of the white-haired soldiers asked.

"There's a chance."

"Martica… if they come back, that means I can avenge her!" The other almost identical girl declared her intention intensely.

"Don't do it on the spot, they could still have uses."

"What do you plan on doing, sir?" It was this question that Sandek had to ponder about.

"…It could be possible, the moon tonight is quite full."

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **03:48 AM**

 **Pacific Ocean, close to Alaska border**

"—2nd Lt. Bridges, there is something I wish to discuss with you." Taking the initiative, Meiya opened an encrypted channel to Bridges alone.

"Hey, hey! 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi, right? Is it alright to be on a secure line? Won't your Captain get angry for this?"

"Do not worry, Takeru cares not for such small triviality."

"Well, okay I guess. What do you want with me?" What Meiya desired to deliberate with Bridges about wasn't something she could just bring up naturally.

"Yuuya Bridges, who gave you that katana?" Still, Meiya opted for the most straight method of investigation.

"Huh? This sword? It was Yui— I mean, 1st Lt. Takamura gave me this."

"And what did she say when you received it?" To Bridges, these questions must sounded pointless and random.

"Err… she said that this sword has been passed down many generations in her family and that it is important for me to have it."

"Yes, what else did she reveal?" There was a certain detail Meiya wanted Bridges to confirm.

"Errm… something about how this's the only sword of its kind and to never lose it… sorry, but I don't really remember all that well."

"Nevertheless, even when she said that, you still have no clue as to her intention?" Honestly, Meiya was a bit upset by the denseness displayed before her.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?"

"I apologize for offending you, Bridges. Forgive me. Maybe it is just not meant to be; the pair of you. Fate often bears its cruel fang for little to no reason. Again, you have my apology, Yuuya Bridges." It was because Meiya understood, the true meaning of that katana bestowed to the American by Takamura.

"Arr, it's fine, I guess? Is there anything else you want to ask me?"

"There is not, I shall end this link now. Good luck, to the both of us, our time is soon."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **04:20 AM**

 **Alaska costal water**

"—Archangel 4 to 1. Refuel is complete, the Type-94 has been scuttled."

"—Arc 1 copy, what's the fuel percentage for everyone?"

"All units should be running at above sixty percent." That was plenty for the takeover of a military base; only the fuel though, I meant only the fuel was enough. Because we all knew some more aspects may or may not be lacking.

 **04:31 AM**

 **Alaska, inland**

"—Attention all units, we will soon reach the edge of Yukon Base's forward reconnaissance faculty. Current time is 0431 hours, remaining time on the operation clock is one hundred and sixty minutes maximum. Does anyone wants to say a final word before we go in?"

"—I want a full course of yakisoba dinner once we make it back." That was Ayamine who just demanded food.

"No way, I don't have that many noodles for you."

"Then I want to ride you once we get back." The cockpit camera view showed me about just everyone got flustered by her shameless topic.

"Also nope, my pride is the only thing that can be on top."

"—can you two please stoop!?" Dissatisfied Class rep basically shouted at the top of her lungs. Unfortunately for her, a good troll cannot be paused for later.

"Then how about you fuck my brains out?" Besides, Ayamine was just going at it.

"That would be a very one-sided night."

"Fine with me." Playing rough was available on the menu.

"Alright, deal."

"Pfff… ahahaha!" Having reached a fulfilling agreement, we both broke down in laughter like grade school kids after an one-in-a-lifetime prank.

"Jesus, Capt. Takeru. For once, just once will you please focus on the mission?!" Our team's Class rep was enacting out her role as the fun-police.

"But nobody else will get their turns!"

"—Takeru-chan, nobody cares." Sumika's blanket putdown left me speechless for a good minute.

"—seriously though, Captain. If there's nothing else, let's go." I couldn't believe even Bridges was hurrying me up.

"You guys are all assholes. But first, 2nd Lt. Bridges, how's the XM3?" Since he spoke, I wanted the American's opinion as the first American to test out my OS.

"This thing is like hyper over sensitive joysticks, works great. The protocol cancels really feel out of place at first, but once we got used to it the movement it provides is amazing."

"Nice, Mav. Glad you like it." He grunted at me for the name calling, not the first time either.

"Anything else? You actually want to go in, right?" I shook my head to disprove his cynical statement.

This was it, this was how all my changes in time will result in. A team of ten Eishis will now attack one of the most advanced military bases on earth. If someone told me this a few weeks ago, I would have laughed, and then reported them to the MPs in Yokohama as unregistered personnel.

"This's the last chance to complain, people. Cause you all missed your exit long ago." As always, most of my team just sighed tiredly at my behaviour.

"Archangel 2, ready as always, Takeru-chan!"

"—Archangel 3, system all green."

"Archangel 4, this… is gonna be a long night, isn't it?"

"—Archangel 5, shall move on your mark, Takeru."

"—Archangel 6, do you think the salmon fish here taste good, Takeru?!"

"—Archangel 7, make sure I don't get pregnant once this is over."

"—Archangel 8, Miki is totally ready, Takeru-san!"

Those were the right words I wanted to hear, most of them, anyway.

"Idar 1 here, thanks… for the help, Capt. Shirogane." Bridges, for one, was respectful and showed his appreciation of our labour.

"—errrmm, also Idar 1. Everybody… thank you very much!"

The right time will never come, the perfect time to strike doesn't exist. All this started with a simple greed, I wanted better gear; now my wish turned into a full-blown performance with the lives of all my loved ones on the line.

Yet, I didn't feel regretful, not one bit. I could very much die in the next five minutes; everyone could, it actually wouldn't be that strange if we just all get destroyed the moment we open fire. The base was the homes for some of the best TSF Eishis of all time, after all.

Nevertheless, it was trust I placed in each and every one of the pilots by my side; they were all strong individuals, even Bridges and Sestina were dependable soldiers. Therefore, I concluded with the fact that there was nothing to be afraid of. We were in this for the win, and we shall walk away with nothing short of a perfect victory.

"—Archangel 1 to all units. Operation Moon Smasher is a go. Full throttles forward and show the Alaskans what a proper terrorist attack is like!"

"Yes, sir!"

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **04:33 AM**

 **Alaska, Soviet Base Б-01, Command center**

Tonight was an irregular night in the command center of the Soviet Base; by normal schedule, half of the operatives would have been off duty instead of being stuck in this hushed control room. Even so, there was not a single person complaining about the forced overtime. The reason was simple, their extra work was asked by none other than Captain Sandek.

"Kapitan, radar just picked up nine unidentified incoming TSFs, fifty kilometres out. They're heading straight for us."

"What are their units?"

"…Sir, there are eight Unknowns. The only identifiable unit is the Su-47 pzX1." Understanding its meaning, Sandek chuckled coldly to himself twice, and only twice.

"Send out a basic warning."

"Vas ponyal (Roger)." The operator pressed a few keys on the panel in front of her and a few beeps echoed back. After connecting her headset to the console and clearing her voice. She began speaking into the microphone.

"—Unidentified Tactical Surface Fighter Squadron. You have entered restricted U.S.S.R airspace. Identify yourselves and leave the area immediately. I repeat —Unidentified Tactical Surface Fighter Squadron…"

When his subordinate attempted to communicate with the invaders via radio, Sandek already grasped how fruitless that will be. The incoming TSFs were intending on anything but turning away, that would make for a very uninteresting event and a very wasted night.

"Kapitan, the Unknowns are not responding." The operator updated him after several unsuccessful outgoing warnings.

"Send out a security Squadron, intercept the Unknowns and return fire if engaged."

"Da, Kapitan. The 11th Security Force will send out eight units for interception."

"No, dispatch three Flights, twelve units should be out there just in case." Having less number than the invaders would just be a worthless test. Albeit adding four to that count wasn't anything impressive, Sandek needed to validate he wasn't squandering his time.

"Roger, Feniks Battalion is moving out right away." If security wasn't the first responders, then why even bother feeding them?

"Good, connect me to their team leader."

"Yest, ser."

—

"—Kapitan Sandek, are you sure of this?"

"—yes, however do remember to value your own lives. If the enemies prove to be too powerful and impossible to capture, you have authority to destroy or retreat."

"Yest, ser. And thank you." Being kind and humane wasn't how Sandek administered generally, however being sympathetic of his men was the mark of a great leader.

"Move out now. Undisrupted, the incoming fighters will reach us in seventeen minutes."

"Yest, ser! Feniks Company, advance!"

Exactly eleven seconds later, the engines of twelve MiG-29s burst past the control tower and flew further and further until they were no longer visible by the naked eye. During this time, Sandek patiently waited for any activities, there wasn't anything for him to do as of now.

So what he required was patience, and luckily, that talent was one of his specialities. Minutes passed uneventfully, the MiGs would make contact soon, not yet.

"Feniks 1 to HQ. We have established visual confirmation with inco—" Strange, the transmission abruptly discontinued before anyone had a chance to react.

"HQ to Feniks 1, request resay. Do you copy, Feniks 1?" The first call went unanswered by Б-01's security team; so did the second, and the third.

"Bring up the tactical data link, let me see the overhead map." There was no doubt in Sandek's mind about the possibilities for what could have arose.

"Understood, satellite imaging is active. The main screen, Kapitan."

At once, the huge, eye catching monitor in the middle of the room triggered by electricity lid up to display a bird's eye view of the impending battlefield. Terribly, the zoom provided by the satellite was too insignificant and TSFs were only the sizes of ants; thus an overlay was applied which marked the Soviets and the Unknowns.

From what could be observed, the three Flights of Feniks were nowhere to be seen from low orbit, only nine markings of the Unknown Flight remained. The attacking team were standing in place as of that moment, their formation was non-existent and each unit was moving in a different orientation.

"Did they… just take out three Flights? In that time?" By now, the commotion caused by the base invaders had attracted the attention of many other operators. One of which remarked the impossible feat done to their security crew.

"Could the Feniks have ran into communication problems?"

"No, no. Their MiGs should be functional, mechanics just did a check-up yesterday!"

"Then how? Area jamming? But that Squadron was still too far away for it!" Many perspectives inserted themselves into this disorder. However, Sandek knew almost with assurance the explanation to their event.

"…Active stealth functions… humm, welcome back to Yukon." In the loud command center, his comment went unnoticed.

"Sir? Your orders?" Finally, the radio worker closest to Sandek called for his input.

"Go on alert. Contact the UN Command, tell them we have incoming hostile forces."

 **Takamura Yui**

 **04:35 AM**

 **Yukon Base, Barracks**

"—DEFCON 2 is in effect. All security teams standby in hanger immediately. Repeat, DEFCON 2 is in effect. All security teams…"

Yui's meagre nap which just began a mere five minutes ago was mercilessly erased by the sudden flashing lights and the ever-beeping noise of the alarms. Although it wasn't all bad, as her minor headache from last night's little relaxation had also been blown away.

"First Lieutenant Takamura Yui, please report to central command center immediately. Repeat, First Lieutenant…" More surprisingly, her own name was demanded by whoever raised the DEFCON level.

Pulling herself up from the comfy bed, Yui considered for a while on which uniform should she don; eventually the Honour Guard settled for the suit more fitting her foundation and left for the command post in haste.

 **04:37 AM**

 **Command Center**

"1st Lt. Dahl! You called for me?" Yui called out to the only person standing before the many operators who were busy typing away on their computers.

"1st Lt. Takamura, sorry for waking you so early." As polite as ever, 1st Lt. Dahl greeted Yui out of manners.

"So what exactly is taking place?"

"You see, the Soviet from Б-01 just sent us a warning for incoming unknown TSF Squadron. They have lost connection with their responding team and the invaders are coming this way." Even with her cold-façade, Yui had trouble hiding the shock of receiving that news.

"We're under attack!? Is there any intelligence on the perpetrators?"

"Nothing as of now. But at their current speed, they'll be within our radar detection range in just… right now." By 1st Lt. Dahl's statement, the biggest screen showed the team of nine moving into Yukon Base's radar range and were subsequently picked up.

"Confirming TSFs… eight Unknowns and the… oh my… the only recognized fighter is the Type-94 Second." One of the three main operators, the Sergeant of Indian descent reported the invader's Surface Fighter to be the same as what Yui was responsible for.

"Could that machine be piloted by 2nd Lt—"

"Cross reference the Unknowns with my databank in the Type-00, hurry!" Cutting off another operative before she could fully reveal what everyone was already thinking, Yui hoped for her estimate to be off the marks; she really, really didn't want to guess the frames of the others.

"We have six more results! Five Type-94 Shiranuis and one Type-00 Takemikazuchi!" In hearing the latest update, Yui was simultaneously devastated and enthusiastic at the same time.

"What about the last two units?"

"Negative, still unidentifiable." Two missing wasn't going to deconstruct Yui's hypothesis, it only added stronger fuel to the fire.

"1st Lt. Takamura, what do you think the incoming TSFs are preparing to do?" 1st Lt. Dahl asked her a question Yui knew was unavoidable.

"I don't have a clue as to their intentions, however we must ready ourselves for combat. What else did the Soviets provide?" As Yui didn't want to topic to stay on TSF models, she moved on to the arranging phase of a potential battle.

"They suggested the possibility of anti-TSF jamming capabilities on the aggressors, their Squadron of twelve was instantly lost upon contract."

"Instantly?" Again, her mouth opened mildly without her realization.

"Yes, the security team reported visual confirmation before cutting off. When they switched to satellite imaging, their team was no longer responsive."

Yui seriously pondered silently, to take down a whole twelve TSFs within such short span of time was seemingly impossible; it was most likely absolutely impossible. However, if it was who she thought it was; impossibility most just be possible for the specific Eishi— no, that specific team of Eishis.

"Then what is the reason I am needed here, 1st Lt. Dahl?"

"Commander General asked for you to be part of the directive personnel, seeing as you're a capable leader." There was no consideration required before Yui nodded and took over.

"Get our 21st Security team ready, have them use local-area mapping and relay data link. Test out the hostiles' jamming capacity and intercept the unfriendlies. In case of emergency, permission to retreat is given."

It sure had been quite a while since Yui took the reins during a combat situation, yet she was calm and thoughtful without missing a beat.

"And one last thing, see if they can properly distinguish the colour of the Type-00."

"The colour, ma'am? For what purpose?" The looks she received from several others told Yui this operator directly to her side wasn't the only confused.

"We paint TSFs differently based on the ranking of its Eis— I mean surface pilot, so knowing its colour can identify at least what faction or command they're following." It wasn't a hundred percent lie Yui told.

"I see. Security team Hakke is on station, how many units should they send?"

"All of them."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **04:40 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, thirty-three klicks out**

"—all units, additional reinforcements incoming. Scan shows to be 21st Security Team, counting thirty-six; even mix of F-15s and 16s. Entire Battalion inbound, spread out and blast'em."

Our nine TSFs were cutting through the air with great velocity as we left the first group of victims far behind, they were only the appetizer in terms of our progress. What we'll face ahead of us could only be more arduous.

"—Yes, sir!" The teammates around me answered heroically to my orders; well, most of them, anyway.

"Hey, Bridges. I just want you to know that I'm in this for the win, alright?" Hopefully this will be the final assessment I needed to place on him.

"—huh? Ah, yeah. I'm a pilot myself, I won't back out, not here." His expression of conflict was moulded to one of determination. Fighting against old allies was a painful practice, I could say that from personal experience.

"Good. —all units, formation undefined, all weapons free." While I did give them permissions for lethal methods, none of my crew was in the mood for spilling blood.

By my orders, the nine TSFs separated from each other in harmony and all went their own ways. The Battalion of Americans had their guns aimed and ready, but their orders must had forced them into a reactive role, meaning we had a spilt second of advantage.

"—Unknown units ahead! You have entered UN Army controlled airspace! Identify yourselves and land immediately! Failure to comply will result in your—" I was in no mood to listen to another warning, they all sounded the same.

"Tama, go for kill."

"—Ta-tangos just entered kill range! Archangel 8 firing!" A nervous Tama called out her shots before letting the bullets fly.

Many lines of white smoke trails were captured by my sensors to my four O'clock, however in reality only half a half dozen slugs set sail with the head component of our enemy TSFs in sight.

"—all shots are good. Three E.K.I.A." Almost by instinct, Kasumi verified the quality of Tama's aim.

By drawing the first blood, we clearly stated our hostile nature to the arriving surface fighters. Their attacking pattern quickly swapped around to compensate for their lost members.

"—popping smoke!" A Shiranui to my back left which was under the rule of my cyan-haired loli fired both salvos of its Heavy metal cloud warheads into the enemy group.

Using our Anti-Laser missiles as smokescreens was the pinnacle of tax money wasting; yet it was okay because Alternative IV rolled in cheddar. Under the cover of Mikoto's fog, I applied my afterburners and boosted in headfirst.

The next moment, a wall of bullets discharged from their assault cannons enclosed in on me when I rushed thought the metal smog into combat. Nonetheless, with only five opposing TSFs shooting, this was just as easy as dodging a football kicked by a Roomba.

"Sorry to disappoint but I… errrm… ayy, fuck it." My brain failed me spectacularly when I couldn't think of a good one-liner proper for this very occasion.

While my IQ was a mess, my muscle memory certainly was not. Exerting the boosters at a perfect time interval, the most their rounds did was whizz me by and getting filtered out by my TSF's noise cancelling.

Once I finally shortened the gap enough to use these garbage EMP bullets, the five F-15s ahead were starting to grasp their hopeless attempts at bringing me down with shells was going nowhere. However, being the morons they were, nobody reacted fast enough before everyone all got shot up and disabled permanently.

"Welp, not entertained." I casually laughed off the wrecked hostiles as what remained of their frames fell from the sky, with any luck, no one got concussion from that.

We were amongst the chaos of war now, bangs and crashes of metal against metal could be discerned in every direction. Gunfire, explosions from 120mms, clashing swords were all part of the norm. Death surrounded us and our enemies, any wrong or right move could spell the doom of any and everyone.

"—Archangel 4, requesting support. Got a bit of a cluster here and I know you like cleaning them up, Takeru." Class rep asked for my help in a much more relaxed voice than what I expected.

"—haa, I got you, girl. —by the way, Mikoto. You said they got good salmon here, right?"

"—oh, yeah! Hold first though! —Arch 8! Two flanking you from the south! Distance, a hundred fifty! —Anyway, there's smoked, sushi, cured and even jerky! Do you think we have time to pack some home?!" As I conversed with Mikoto about promising after-duty dishes, she sliced an F-16 with her knife before finishing off one of Sumika's kills.

"—uawwaa! But that's my guuuuy!" Annoying as always.

"We probably can manage something." Since the terrain offered no cover of any type whatsoever, a Fighting Falcon was demolished to several bits by my rate of fire.

"—Takeru, you got dudes on your six. A question too, what's their yakisoba like?" I couldn't see what Ayamine was up to from this angle, however, a loud detonation that went off in my close proximity was probably her work.

"You serious right now? Also good save, I wasn't gonna turn around for that one." Being the caring squad leader, I praised Ayamine for accurately taking care of a TSF who thought it flanked me.

"—are you guys… actually discussing about food!? We're fighting a war, you know?" Bridges, to my surprise; was more uptight than I first imagined.

"Calm, calm, my boi. —Meiya, watch eight, Falcons coming to you."

"—see them, they' are downed. Appreciate the tip, Archangel 1." My callout for Meiya was adequate, she turned around rapidly and busted two F-16s before they could use their melee.

"—attention all units. Half of the Battalion have been undermined, continue engagement and watch out when the smoke clears."

"—understood." In unison, their collective voices returned my call in a collected manner.

"—you see, Bridges? This is cannon folder, once your friends show up, we'll get down to business." While complaining, his and Sestina's 94 Second performed a full loop to get behind an F-15 and lid up its rear.

"You people… really are ridiculous."

 **Takamura Yui**

 **04:43 AM**

 **Command Center**

"…Unbelievable, to be this efficient at disposing of surface fighters with signal interceptors…"

"—this is Hakke 1 to HQ! We can't hold out much longer! These guys are simply on a different level! We have already lost fourteen units!" The Battalion leader of Yukon's security force was unable to withstand the basic onslaught Yui sent his team to engage, or at this point; endure.

"—HQ to All Hakke units, fall back immediately. Disengage all hostiles." She trusted her decision to be a wise one as losing anymore men would be valueless.

"Roger that! By the way, First Lieutenant! The Type-00 we saw was most likely purple! …Yeah, yes! It's definitely purple without a doubt!"

Whether it was despair or confusion washing over Yui at this time, she wasn't convinced her new lord would turn against her belief so simply. There must be a reason for this attack, there had to be one. Or else Yui might just lose hope in everything again.

"I see… pull back and regroup by Hanger 14."

"What do you suppose we do now, 1st Lt. Takamura?" Beside her, the Turkish former Captain requested Yui's input on their unfavourable situation.

"…Connect me to the Soviets, right away." It was quite rare for Yui to take the initiative when 1st Lt. Dhal was around, but this once she must accept the responsibility of possibly being the source of all this destruction.

"Already linked, ma'am." One of the three CP operatives was ahead of her and in turn directed Yui's earpiece to the comms with the Russians of Б-01.

"—who am I speaking to, Yukon Base?" An almost unbelievably composed voice asked Yui through the radio signal.

"—I am 1st Lt. Takamura Yui currently stationed on Yukon Base. I assume this to be Captain Sandek, correct?"

"It is I. Let's not waste time on petty greetings and get down to the topic, 1st Lt. Takamura." How uncommon, Yui had the same thing on her mind.

"Agreed, is there any information you can provide us about the intruders?"

"One of the Unknowns is piloting a Su-47. Unfortunately, we are unable to identify the remaining eight frames." If what Sandek told Yui was true, then the Soviets were in no better position themselves.

"We have determined six other TSFs, I'm sending over the files now." If Yui wanted to arrest the attackers and investigate the situation, cooperating with the Russians was a must.

"We are thankful for your assistance, however as the Su-47 is considered national property. It's details cannot be shared, I apologize."

"No, there is a name I'm leaving out as well." Two signs of atonement were only offered as manners of the military, neither Yui or Sandek truly felt terrible for denying the other data.

"Do you have any suggestions on what procedure we should take?" Sandek asked a question Yui had to ponder over repeatedly without reaching a comfortable solution.

Despite her unwillingness, Yui's life was defined by her sense of duty; and that duty was once again claiming over her name, making decisions she herself could never come to.

"Yeah, we'll go to DEFCON 1. Activate all Test Flights under UN regulation and attempt capture on the attacking forces. We cannot allow them to continue wandering over Yukon!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **04:45 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, fourteen klicks out**

"—sensors are captured multiple inbounds. Identified to be Argos, Duma and Slechtvalk." Yeah… only Kasumi could mispronounce her verbs and still pronounce that flight name.

"—Arc lead to all units. Try-hard panties are coming on, these guys are the real deal. Yukon's Test Flights are regarded as the best Eishis in the world, so let's topple them with gratification!"

"—yes, sir!"

The river of Yukon twenty metres below us flowed opposite in course to where we were bearing toward. The naturally peaceful water was heavily disturbed by our jump units as it fired propellant at a regular interval in reverse to boost our TSFs forward.

The winter night was still young without a hint to the sun's rise, however the gorgeous full moon shined its reflection down upon the ten Eishis personally handling their destiny. There was no room for failure ahead of the path we cruised, the regret of mistakes must be something we will not feel.

"Encounter in sixty, all units. Do not underestimate their abilities, use full caution as you engage and never forget to check your—"

"—it's okay, Takeru-chan. We're adults too, you don't need to hold our hands anymore." Sumika, my ever-loving partner reassured me of my crew's maturity.

"—do not fear for us, Takeru. Instead, we shall do spectacular if you place your faith in the team you trained vividly." Meiya kindly sought for me to believe in the girls I taught.

"—Takeru-san, it'll be our future ahead." Kasumi cheered me on about the impending tomorrow we all will craft together.

"—this's our fight to carry too, Takeru. And I don't intend on losing to the best of the world." Class rep accepted the responsibility I pushed onto her.

"—take them out… pack for home. This one's for you, Squad leader Takeru. So is everything else after today." Kei decided to fight on my behalf for the rest of eternity.

"—I t-think we all can do this together, Takeru-san! We all worked so hard, after all!" Tama was always an irreplaceable part of this Squadron which she believed in.

"—yeah, yeah! We're following our own wills! There's nothing like enjoying what you achieved with your own hands!" Mikoto was my strong girl who did so much for all those she cared about.

Listening to their words of strength, I studied the features of each and every one that fought by my side until now. Their faces all had unalike attributes and their looks all carried divergent weight along; yet the only identical fact I noticed was the smile, the smile looming over their mouths.

"You girls really are the best… it's probably a death flag to say this now but… I truly love the all of you." My confession was a genuine one without any lie.

"…Wha-wh-whha—"

"Sakaki, shut up and don't ruin it."

"But-but Tak-keru-san ju-us—"

"You too, Tamase. This moment of indulgence shall last longer than the seconds we just passed."

"Ahahaha! Archangel Squadron! Now shall be the time! Warm-up session just ended! I want Yukon Base and I want it now! So bring me victory and let us all enjoy the glory!"

"Yes, sir!"

 **Tarisa Manandal**

 **04:49 AM**

"—these guys are close, I can smell them. The radars might not work but as long as we can see the targets, we'll be fine! Prepared for combat!" Tarisa, of all people yelled out the order for attack as the transitory leader of Argos Flight. Since her callsign was Argos 2, the position naturally moved down to her after Yuuya's departure.

She was currently charging ahead of the pack with VG shadowing her and Stella further back. Duma Test Flight broke away to deal with a Flight of hostiles they saw which went a different way and Slechtic-whatever you call it also deviated to engage another sub-group of the attackers.

When she was awakened earlier today by the alarm and a call to gather in the hanger, Tarisa actually got legitimately excited to pilot again after so long. The last time she had the chance to fly her ACTV was when Yuuya bailed on her team and eloped with the Scarlet twins. However, that was a time Tarisa preferred not to recall.

Not having the Shiranui Second was a bummer to the Nepalese girl but she was convinced such high-tech TSF wouldn't be necessary to catch a mere nine TSFs who invaded Yukon for god knows why. Maybe they do have jamming and stealth on their side; still, that was no compensation for what they lacked in number.

"—our comms are still working so that's a plus. You ready, Chobi? They must got some courage to challenge us with so few forces." VG's smug shot popped up on Tarisa's projector, his relaxed mentality was a good peace-bringer for them all.

"Aha! It wouldn't matter, anyway! I'm just happy to get this fight before being sent to wherever they want me next!"

"—ara, ara. A little eager, aren't we? Be careful not to get picked off right away, you know?" Stella added her own comment.

"Ahehhee, you see, right? The proble—"

"Talk later, scanners just picked up hostiles ahead!" VG's sentence was rightfully interrupted by Tarisa when she confirmed the visual on their targets.

"Wow, they ain't hiding, that's for sure."

Around two Kilometres in front of Argos, three TSFs were drifting forward with excessive distance-coverage behind their backs. The XFJ Test Flight was briefed earlier by Takamura on the models their enemies utilized, Japanese's Type-94 Shiranui, the parent unit to the Shiranui Second.

"Formation Arrowhead 1! This'll be an even number fight! Don't steal my kills, VG!"

"If you don't get shot down first, sure." If they weren't about to clash in another minute, Tarisa would have continue the quarrel with VG to its end instead of dropping it as was.

"Just shut up! And Stella, so do I have to give them a warning first?"

"Nope, but things will be much better if they just drop their guns." Maybe so, but that wouldn't be of any fun for Argos.

"Then weapons free, team. Don't aim for vitals and take them alive!"

 **04:50 AM**

The spring in Tarisa's AMWS assault cannons elevated 36mm one after another at the rate of one thousand and four hundred rounds per minute. The casing-less HVAPs were spat out from the barrel and detonated in a straight line with negligible deviation. Her two guns poured an unlimited amount of lead down range as her machine maneuvered accurately to gain a better firing angle.

Still, even with all that firepower and movement, Tarisa had yet to land a single shot anywhere on the armour of this Shiranui.

"—Stella! VG! This's useless! I'm gonna cut this guy!" Tarisa reported her intention to switch away from firearms to her teammates.

"—wait-wait-wait! That's a terrible idea! They're clearly baiting you in!" As much as she hated admitting it, The Italian certainly had a point.

Her foe was obviously taunting Tarisa; she wasn't taken seriously by that Type-94's pilot. And this was furiating, extremely upsetting as a matter of fact.

Dodging in and out of the clouds, the twin-engine vehicle danced across the sky much faster than Tarisa's eyes or her targeting system was able to track. In the vast space above the planet where there existed no cover to hide behind, the TSF was still avoiding each single piece of the F-15's bullets.

"I have to get close to this asshole! His cuts are too fast!" Out of deep displeasure, Tarisa was still single-minded on engaging the Unknown in CQC.

"—Argos 2! We can't back you up if you get in close!"

"You can't back me up anyway, Stella! Just deal with your guys and don't worry!"

A minute earlier the dark-skinned girl announced for there to be three incoming surface fighters and thus making it an even fight; on that note, she was absolutely correct. The trio of Shiranuis all attacked the Argos independently, none of which considered to cover for their accomplice.

So their tactic of not using tactics was fully potent against the UN test pilots, neither VG or Stella could be of any help to Tarisa due to their own battle with the invaders. In the most basic sense, this was a one-verses-one between Tarisa and whoever flew the 94.

"Wait for us to finish here! Then we'll deal with your Bogey!" Shouted VG over his comms, however the chance of that happening anytime soon or at all was slim at best.

"Yeah, no, fuck this! I'm going in!" Opting for a faster approach, Tarisa boosted full speed onward in the direction of the TSF.

Chasing the tail of the Japanese unit right before her, Tarisa fired her rifles a few more times without effect. Concluding that she was still not in the optimal distance, the Active pilot boosted her fighter even closer to the runner.

Then that Shiranui barely within her range did a hard lift from a climbing position, putting it somewhere right above Tarisa. However, being the experienced surface pilot she was; Tarisa already foreseen the outcome of that move. She pitched her F-15 downwards about sixty degrees and flipped it upside down, knowing the hostile unit would return to her sight once the action was completed.

"Huh? Where…?" So no doubt, she couldn't believe her eyes when the prey she tracked until now was not present on her screen.

Being in a vertically inverted position, she immediately turned her head downwards to search for the target somewhere above her; nothing was found. Again, looking to either sides yielded negative-spot on the enemy machine.

The next second after that, right before she checked behind her unit, a tremendously spiteful alert rained in her eyes and two exceedingly miserable words appeared in her retina.

The phrase 'locked on' popped up in the upper-right corner of her projected monitor, cleared from her main camera view which still didn't tell her the location of her adversary.

"Fucking hell! –SHIT!" There wasn't a need for any other words in her situation.

The Type-94 was somewhere, she understood that. It was using its auto target acquisition system to lock onto her TSF, she also understood that. Finally, the most important point to know here was that there absolutely was no point in locking on at this range; just by manually firing its gun, the Shiranui could take her down in a mere fraction.

Without any chance to consider her circumstances, Tarisa was forced into accelerating upwards with a left angle. The ACTV hurtled itself violently at the activation of its full boosters, almost causing Tarisa to bit her tongue in the way up.

Now in a more advantageous position, she fired her mounted cannon forthwith to catch her opponent off guard. But once more, the shots she expired were not good; the Shiranui was already elsewhere long ago. It returned to Tarisa's blind spot where she got locked on again.

"AGGRAA! SHITHEAD!" Outplayed, Tarisa was outplayed repetitively.

 **04:52 AM**

"THIS FUCK! Get over here and die already!"

Their routine continued for three more times. Tarisa would escape from the auto-lock only to be left without the target in her crosshairs, then another warning indicating she was caught in the center of the Shiranui's gun would pop up and bully her into dodging again. Rinse; repeat.

"We're done here! WE'RE DONE HERE, MOTHERFUCKER! I'M GONNA CUT YOUR ASS OPEN!" Finally pushed over her limit, the shorter than average pilot had it with being toyed by what was supposed to be her prey.

Tarisa ignited her engines to its brim and charged straightforward making a beeline for the Type-94. She fired a few last shots before throwing away her assault cannons since bullets were clearly not cutting it. The Active's now-freed hands griped two knives, each grabbed from their case on either side of its legs.

"GET THE FUCK OVER THERE!" With one final shout of rage, Tarisa maximized her boosters to push her as close to that unit as fast as possible.

Surprisingly; or unsurprisingly, the Shiranui ahead didn't bother to fire its guns when her F-15 thrust closer and closer to the infiltrator with its blades as the sharpest and nearest point of contact.

Just a little bit further and Tarisa could touch the sensors on the 94's head, she was at long last only metres away now after many physically demanding maneuvers she took to get there.

"You're mine, BITCH!" Then the Active's knives struck heavy iron, a flash of metal sparks and motorized smoke was the instant result of her attack which she knew connected.

What Tarisa felt at that time was confidence, she wholehearted believed for the enemy to be there; right there under her right knife.

For that to take place should had been the logical outcome. Her foe didn't take one step out of evasion after she pulled her daggers, the Type-94 wasn't going to magically make her knives disappear into thin air. What could possibly go wrong?

In fact, Tarisa was so self-reliant that the beeping of her TSF went straight over her head, the alarm was there, warning her of something she should have noticed just a second earlier.

"No… fucking way…!" The advice annoying her was actually the TSF notifying her of the dysfunctional main arms that just sustained massive damage.

A whole five seconds was how long it took for the smoke to clear away. Once it did, the Shiranui was within breathing range of Tarisa; not of her machine, mind it. She was literally close enough to exhale on the outer armour if she exited her cockpit at any time.

"…This, is bullshit!" Understandably, the dark-haired girl was robbed of any comeback; both in terms of insult and combat.

Tarisa blinked her eyes twice just to make sure she wasn't dreaming, when she came back and saw the same scene before her, there was nothing else to fight on about.

Both of her machine's hands had an anomaly placed in them, and that was two added Japanese Type-65 PB Knives sticking out of them. Together they stabbed her limbs smack on in the centre of her forearms, it pierced through her armour and deemed her hands useless from that point on.

To spike a TSF in its arms as it rushed forward at full speed was a feat Tarisa didn't even dream about. The accuracy, the reaction time, the reflex and probably the luck too, was something she didn't have in store.

Having disabled her main arms, the Shiranui calmed plucked off her unit's fingers and took her American daggers for its own. That was all done too quickly for Tarisa to process; and so were the bullets it put into her ACTV's head with the guns on its Mount Pylon.

Now that was truly nothing left. After behind shot in her face, all screens surrounding Tarisa's retina were gone entirely; just as if her TSF was killed in the truest sense. With no information provided to her anywhere, Tarisa couldn't maintain her TSF's levitation and plummeted downwards along with armour pieces broken off from her arms.

 **Ayamine Kei**

 **04:53 AM**

"—ACTV, add one smoked. I saw their skill level, we can take'em." All that was left for Kei to do was reporting her successful kill.

"—Arc 4 roger. Rendezvous on us, the rest are over here."

"Archangel 7 understood, moving to assist."

Quickly caching her stolen knives into her arm sheath, Kei chased after the falling Active and caught it before the machine slammed onto the undeniably hard earth. She released the F-15 from a relatively safe height before retrieving the pair of assault rifles she dropped.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1**

 **Sumika Archangel 2**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4**

 **Meiya Archangel 5**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7**

 **Tamase Archangel 8**

—

 **[REDIRECTING TO DATA ROUTER]**

 **[UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED]**

 **[VERIFICATION CODE: SHIMMERINGEND]**

 **[UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS CONFIRMED]**

 **[PARTIAL AUTHENTICATION CONFIRMED]**

 **[REQUESTED DATA CLASSIFIED]**

 **[PARTIAL DECRYPTION COMPLETE]**

 **[FILE AVAILABLE FOR RE-EXAMINATION]**

—

 **Ultimate girls' night I**

—

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Time: [REDACTED]**

 **Location: [REDACTED]**

 **[CONFIDENTIAL DOCUMENT. EYES ON ONLY]**

"Nyahh..! Haaa! K-Kaassumi-chaan! Mnnn… mrrnnnn! I'm gonna…ahha! I can't hold on anymore~! Ahhahaaaaaaa!" Sumika jerked her hips up hard, the sensation of satisfaction blitzed throughout her body like lighting. Second to Takeru, Kasumi was the best at providing her with this perception of a specific joy.

Sumika's washed out breath gradually slowed down in tempo as the 00 unit released Kasumi's face from being pushed up against her crotch. On the other hand, the bunny Russian girl still displayed a deadpan expression. Save for wiping off the nectar that was sprayed all over her face, there appeared to be nothing wrong with this girl.

"It is important to be constant in attacking the sensitive parts of the clit and paying attention to the moans, it often tells you how close the person is to climax. Also make sure to switch between sucking and licking, the feeling is noticeably different." To the rest of their audience, Kasumi explained her techniques.

"UUUUU…! That was sooooo embarrassing~!" Cowered to a ball, Sumika was burning with shame after her exhibition of sexuality.

A peaceful night in the chamber of **[REDACTED]** , a total of six girls gathered together for a special sleepover. Meiya, Yuuhi, Kei and Haruko all watched passionately at the aftermath of a heated floorboard munching between Sumika and Kasumi, it was not something covered in their education from their respective upbringings.

 **[LOCATION INFORMATION UNAVAILABLE]**

Unconsciously, all the onlookers rubbed around their nether region to disperse the pent up tension, even by a little bit. None of the girls were in any sort of clothing, the heaters installed in **[REDACTED]** were more than sufficient at keeping the naked ladies warm.

 **[LOCATION INFORMATION UNAVAILABLE]**

"What can I say here that is appropriate… I cannot imagine a single word for usage that will not offend any of the parties presented."

"I believe it is wish to say nothing at all, Meiya… this is… indeed far away from subjects of which we are authorities on." The twins shared a knowing gaze, neither had anything good to express.

"That was really… amazing, I guess? Where did you learn all that, Yashiro-san?" Haruko flustered bright red, but still chose to fulfill her curiosity.

"In the past, Takeru-san taught me many things."

"…How old are you again, Kasumi?" Closing her eyes to a meek line, Kei questioned Kasumi on an unrelated topic.

"I turned **[REDACTED]** about **[REDACTED]** ago." Kasumi replied with brutal honesty.

 **[INCIDENT DATE UNAVAILABLE]**

"Hum… and just how old is Shirogane these days? Don't lie, okay?" Haruko pushed on with the interrogation.

"He is currently—"

"Kaassummmi-chhhan! You can't tell them~!" The recently recovered Sumika sprung back to life, her short rest seemed to have washed off her exhaustion from being made an example of Kasumi's mastery.

"Is there a matter with Takeru-sama's age of which we must not know?" Finding the topic interesting, Yuuhi joined the fray.

"EEEE! Please don't think too much, Yuuhi-sama! It's nothing! Absolutely nothing!" Waving her arms wildly, Sumika panicked at the mention of Takeru's time alive.

"Hum, this is undeniably intriguing to me. Meiya, present me your opinion on whether we should continue the pursuit of this subject."

"Aneue, as Sumika's friend, I do not think continuing this bother will be worth the potential harm it could cause to our amity. Thus I recommend you to stray away from the topic of which she wishes not to discuss." Professionally, Meiya sided with Sumika on their debate.

"Very well, I shall do as you advocate, sister." Yuuhi bowed lightly to Sumika and ended their questioning.

"She didn't notice… she didn't notice shit…"

"Seriously, isn't kinda obvious if you think about it? Shirogane is definitely over eighteen, right?"

"The Shogun still got lots to… don't think too much, I know." A short chit-chat between Kei and Haruko got terminated when the pink-haired robot fired a murderous glare under the sheets in their direction.

"Anyway, everyone! What did you think about the play? Should we keep going? I think we should, we very much should! Hehehe! Yes, yes!" Strangely, when nobody paid close attention, Sumika had gained the dominance over her remaining friends. The humiliation of being the only one pushed down transformed into her strength and sadistic personality.

"Err… eh? Eh, what?" Everyone was taken off guard by her suggestion.

"Waait? I thought we're only watchin—"

"Kasumi-chan, get her." Taking over their little game, Sumika demanded for Haruko to be the next victim.

"Please trust me, it feels good, I promise."

"Ehh? EEehh—!? Awwggaa!" Leaping herself onto the blue-head, Kasumi fondled Haruko's breasts immediately.

The other girls, now fearful for their lucidity, slowly tried to creep away from a smirking Sumika as she inspected the act of Haruko being ruled by Kasumi over their bed.

"Ahehehe! You all think you can get away!? I'M GONNA GET YOU ALL! COME BACK!"

"KYAAYYYAAA!"

"It's not like you never done this before! MUAHAHAHHAA!" Laughing evilly in a joking manner, another endless night started for the group of burdened teens.

—

 **[FILE UNAVAILABLE FOR PLAYBACK]**

 **[ACCESS TERMINATED]**

—

 **Author's note**

So I did get a little omake thing going here. If you like it; great, if you hated it, at least you know what to skip. For the first OVA I started off with a bang (literally) to test the waters, although it's not like there won't be more.

Whether they're canon (to this fic) or not, that's up for you to decide. Some could be just muffy-fluffy-slice-of-lifeygoody while others have plots, they're not all canon or they could be. I don't even know as I write this. They're also not on a weekly basis and have not be BETAed, so have fun with the return of engrish, not like it left.

Mostly, the omakes appear if a chapter is too short or too boring, thus giving me an excuse to not properly pace things down the line, you're all gonna love a five thousand words chapter with another four thousand words of bullshit.

Back to the main thing, I'm terrible at writing fight scenes so don't expect them to get more detailed. Most fights won't get better than this, put your hopes down, people. This story is long enough as is, Sado is just the next arc and yet it's still so far away I haven't started it.

BETA done by chad001, as for your joke;. since we're Canadians, the American election.


	32. Turn around, every now and then II

**Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Sakaki Chizuru**

 **04:54 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, eleven klicks out**

"—Arc 1 to Flight B, report your status."

"—Arc lead, Archangel 7 killed one of Argos. We're currently firing on the remaining two." The normally angry Chizuru spoke collectively to her Squadron commander.

"Copy that, continue your work. Also, were the test pilots good?" Takeru's question was not in Chizuru's right to reply.

"You can ask Ayamine, she was the one who got it."

"Nah, I'll do that later. You keep it going."

"Understood, Capt. Takeru. —attention, Flight B will now engage all Bogeys. All Fox green, we have control." At long last, Chizuru received her chance to act like a proper leader after being demoted by Takeru. Now, she was returned some of that authority as the leader of Flight B, consisting of Kasumi, Mikoto, Ayamine and Tamase.

"—Archangel 3, roger. Concentrating fire on Mirage 2000s."

"—Archangel 6, understood! I see two F-16s coming! Distance, three hundred!"

"—Archangel 7, going for ACTV 2."

"—Archangel 8, as-assisting 07 with Actives!"

"Archangel 4, all copy. Currently firing on incoming F-16."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **04:55 AM**

" _Taakeeeruuu-chaaan! I'm soooo borrreeed!_ "

" _If you keep complaining, I'll make your mouth lose one of its two core functions._ "

" _Two…? But I don't technically need to eat or breathe though!_ "

" _Exactly._ "

"… _Aha! …AWWAWWA! TAKERU-CHAN! Th-th-t-that's se-sexual harassment!_ " Took the dumbass long enough.

" _Seriously though, you're our ace-in-the-hole here. If I have you blown over by those guys, it won't be worth it. Same for me. So stop complaining about not getting off, go play with yourself._ "

As I continued to abuse Sumika mentally from the comfy seat of my YF-23, the explosion of a nearby 120mm shook my frame lightly. The rapid alteration in stance was swiftly fixed by my responsive Jump units, both engines boosted in counter of one another and I soon regained my balance.

From afar, a couple more bombardment shells came flying my way, its shooter was a Mirage 2000 Kai of the African Test Flight. When I took the time and deliberation to actually avoid its deadly rounds, a volley of 36mms whizzed harmlessly past my frame.

"Uuu-gaa… damn, so tired. —Arc lead to anyone listening, got a… err, got a guy on me. Emm, somebody want to get that dude?" My entire request was said through a sleepy yawn.

"—already dead." Immediately after Kasumi's remark, a bullet tore through that modified F-5's head compartment and dropped it on that spot. The 2000 Kai maintained altitude from leftover boost before collapsing to the ground, about twenty metres shouldn't kill the Eishi of the TSF.

"Daaamn, girl. That shot was niiiice!" I energetically praised Kasumi's meticulous shooting.

"Thank you, Takeru-san." On my mini-map, a blue dot on behalf of Kasumi scanned the area around me before heading off elsewhere.

I divided my team into two smaller Platoons before facing off against the three defensive Flights of Yukon. Currently my organized Flight B was duking it out opposite to PROMINENCE's Argos, Duma and Slechoianvanlfjn whatever.

As for my reasoning behind not joining the fight together with the rest of my Squadron; well, it was because we weren't needed. B team got their shit together nicely and had things locked down.

"—you weren't joking when you said to sit this one out, huh? Hostile forces are almost below half."

"Ah, Red Baron. Where have you been?" When I turned my machine to formally face him, Bridges arrived stealthy in his 94 Second.

"That is like nowhere near my actual name." Bridges for once actually picked a funny bone with me.

"Haaha, true that." In the open, our two Third-Gens hovered without any cover amidst a warzone. Yet no shots came anywhere close to landing on us.

"So who was it that got the first kill?" Bridges found a trivial topic to chit-chat about.

"Ayamine did, Archangel 7 in Flight B."

"Did she stab someone with the knives? She just seemed the type to do it."

"Also true. —Arc lead to Arc 7, you busy right now?" Being as bored as I was, a wish naturally occurred within me to pull Ayamine into the conversation as well.

"—Dealing with this ACTV, what you want?" I took that to mean she was free.

"Tell us how you got the first F-15."

"Nothing special, it got pissed because I kept dodging and locking. Pilot came at me with knives. Shank, shank, dead." What a beautiful, descriptive retelling of Ayamine's great achievement.

"Yeah, I think I know who that is. The pilot's fine, right?"

"Uh-huh, I checked vitals… nothing wrong." Bridges lightly nodded to Ayamine who switched her sight back on me.

"Who else's left out there?"

"Two from Argos, two from Duma and three of them EU assholes." Either she seriously hated Europe or the name of that F-16 Flight was too much.

"Well done, keep up the pressure."

"Tell that to Class rep, she can't handle it." A metaphorical shot was fired to our lovely glasses.

"—you shut your mouth, Ayamine! Urgga, it's just this Active is giving me trouble with its sniper fire!" Debunked Class rep when she budged into our channel.

"Get Tama to take care of it, is she not available?"

"—uuurm, b-but Miki is busy dealing with the 2000 Kais! They teamed up with the Actives and are making it hard to fire back!" Next was Tama who also joined in our comms chat.

"How about Mikoto?"

"—sorry, F-16s are fleeing toward the group too! They're regrouping! I'm chasing one right now!" I laughed quietly at the notice, all of my B team was preoccupied with hostiles.

"Let's stop wasting time, Captain. I'll assist them, my fuel and ammunition has been full the whole time." A different idea was promoted by Bridges.

"…Yeah, I'm playing around too much here. Type-94 Second Phase 3, you have consent." There may be still time remaining until the VIP kicks her bucket, however one cannot be too careful.

"Aye, aye. Idar 1 advancing."

 **Stella Bremer**

 **04:58 AM**

"—watch it, watch it, Argos 4! They got a shooter two O'clock, five hundred metres out!"

"—oow, thanks for that, Duma 3." By a warning from the African Flight, Stella nearly circumvented getting picked off by an unfriendly sniper.

"—Slechtvalk 2 to Argos, give us some covering fire! I got a Tango biting my ass!" Turning her attention to a hostile Type-94 in hot pursuit of two F-16s, both Stella and VG fired off their assault cannons toward that TSF which backed away due to the high volume of bullets.

"—you're clear, Slechtvalk 2, reform with us and we're temporary pulling back." In a rare instance of seriousness, VG gave out some orders as the agreed-upon highest in command.

—

"Damn it! We already lost almost half of our forces! To only five TSFs too!"

"—we have to report back to HQ, these guys are not joking around at all." A suggestion was quickly formed between the surviving UN defenders.

The grass beneath the remaining seven tactical fighters was bent by jets of compressed air. The group carefully surfaced in the direction of Yukon Base, none of them slacked off and were all focused on any movements.

"What should we do, VG? The area is still affected by ECM and we have orders to capture the invaders, no kills."

"I ain't got nothing, still can't reach Yui-Hime or anyone else for that matter." The same could be said for Stella's connection.

"These guys are really good, I haven't see Tarisa lose a fight in so long."

"Hihihi, that sure is right. Can't believe she got stabbed in the arms while lunging." Stella joked a bit about Tarisa's miserable defeat to lighten the mood only because she saw her safely exiting her downed unit after being carried to the ground.

Their situation as of the moment was grim, understandably so. The only redeeming quality of their otherwise detested foes was that they showed mercy to those they defeated. For that, Stella silently thanked her enemies when Tarisa ran off the battlefield, she felt lucky things weren't getting any worse.

"Ahha, she's gonna scream her head off if we recover this situation."

"She'll probably do that anyway even if we don't." Knowing the Nepalese's personality, Stella was confident in VG's deduction.

In their current formation, the Argos took center with the F-16s in vanguard and the leftover Duma Element protecting their backs. It was not a posture with many thoughts behind it, but it will have to do for now.

"—Duma 4 to Argos, the signa— is deteriorating at an — rapid rate ove— our AO— possib— incoming—" A sudden message was muffled out thanks to static noises by the time it reached the ears of Stella. Even if she already knew her map to be non-functional, she still took a peek in hopes of spotting their potential foes.

"Negative copy, Duma 4. Come again." VG requested a repeat to no avail.

Across the horizon past where their rearguard was watching, Stella seemed to be able to make out something not quite like the environment that surrounded them. With low forests and a river nearby, this could just be a simple trick played by reflections of light. However, being the sharpshooter of her team, Stella had the responsibility to watch for the furthest hostiles.

"VG, look at my coordinates. Can you see something?"

"I'll see… I can't really tell the diff—" In the next instant, their observation was rendered completely pointless, and futile.

Out of absolutely nowhere, the noise of metal scratching metal rained out unswervingly behind the two surface pilots. Since Stella and VG were both facing backwards as they traversed parallel to the river, the only justification was for a hostile to have slipped them by and ambushed their vanguard.

"—SHIT INCOMIN—" The F-16 pilot who shouted in terror was already gone by the time Stella rotated around.

Three Fighting Falcons; gone, in the blink of an eye, Stella only caught a glimpse of their attacker as she finally came face to face with whoever steered his TSF into a standing backflip. Its blades swung in an overhead arc and detached the final F-16's arms, leaving three Second-Gens disabled.

"94… Second!" Then the moment of realization hit, it was the same unit; the same one as what Yuuya controlled months ago. Its form was simply alluring; its every movement majestic to the core.

That TSF was Stella's enemy, Yuuya was Stella's enemy. However, the reason she raised her rifles and tightened her triggers was not due to an order from up top, it was something different; something basic.

The 94 Second before her showed resolve to kill, it would not be stopped and it could not be stopped. Stella saw it, through the sharp blades on its arms and the primed assault cannons on its back; The Phase 3 was no longer ridden by her old friend who had a hard time with her teases.

For that, Stella too was going to respond. Her guns aimed for the center mass of Yuuya's impending machine, a torrent of bullets and a shell at this range would do him in. Even a TSF with enhanced armour couldn't survive if 36mm and 120mm were thrown point-blank. So it wasn't a problem of weaponry that made Stella fail.

"—Stella, VG, sorry about this." His voice quietly echoed in Stella's ears. It was no different from the last time she spoke with him, he didn't sound any more distant than he usually did. Yuuya was still their friend; for a second, Stella was fooled by that illusion.

That fraction cost her a feasible victory. When Stella's flash of doubt was cleared, both arms holding her guns were already cleaved clean off. When she blinked next, something impacted her ACTV's head and shut down her sensors forever.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **05:01 AM**

"—ACTV 2, 3 toasted. UN Argos Flight burnt." Callously, Yuuya announced the defeat of his former teammates.

The daggers attached to the Phase 3's arms were still hot, and it will only become hotter as Yuuya gunned for his next prey.

Wasting no time on unrequired suspension of its strike, the Phase 3 burst away from the floored machines in its wake before they hit the ground. Yuuya charged forward, unblinkingly as he went after the persisting two members of Yukon's defensive Flight.

Both Mirage 2000s from the African Union were apprehensively scrambling away from Yuuya's arm daggers as he kept dashing forward, uncaring for the barrage of lost shots from the fleeing TSF and its buddy. Yuuya drew closer by each metre at an incredible rate; a speed the French Specialized Fighters had no chance of covering.

Reducing the distance away to double digits, Yuuya knew he could finish this fight anytime he fancied; tastelessly, he wasn't feeling any bit merciful, owing to the fact that any second he shaved off here would be another second for Cryska to live.

"Inia; stab."

"Okay!" His co-pilot obediently followed his order to a T.

Burning his engines to max power, all Yuuya did was surge past the two TSFs, lacking the mobilization of his weapons; for his job was just this, fly. Yuuya only had to focus on the one segment of managing his TSF.

The two modified F-5s appeared to have frozen in place, neither moved a joint or attempted to dodge the strike that came faster than their pilots could react. Another trick of the clock later, both frames were already on their way diving down involuntary toward the earth surface. The cause of death being sliced heads and EMP bullets in the back of their cockpits.

The killing was taken care of by Yuuya's partner; since her job was exactly that, slay. When the Phase 3 flew by its duo of foes, Inia reached out the Shiranui's hands which had vanes extending on this forearms and slashed. It was a perfect shear; right under the chin by where the armour was the thinnest, on the necks of both frames.

In spite of her seemingly flawless kill, Inia still need to add her finishing touch on her fine work. The assault rifles mounted on the 94's hind were aimed and both fired three times. One for lower body and two for the cockpit blocks, ensuring the survival of those two frames were murdered from the roots.

"—African Union, Duma Flight wiped. No hostiles left." And the shortest battle concluded extremely lopsided to Yuuya's undeniable victory, he quickly picked up his set of EMP rifles that were discarded earlier.

"—attention, all units. We'll continue advancing on Yukon. Without interruption, our ETA is three hundred seconds. Execute as planned and don't deviate except for cases of emergency." Shirogane announced over the radio. They were so close now, Yuuya never imagined his homecoming would be like this.

"Yuuya, are you worried?"

"Yeah, a bit." The Japanese-American honestly retorted.

"Don't be, Yuuya. We can do this, I believe in us!" Spinning around to shine a bright smile Yuuya's way, Inia's big round eyes beamed a glance of hope for her future.

"Me too, once this's done, let's all go home; you, me and Cryska. The three of us can finally be together." The tomorrow of his dream was right before him now, and Yuuya vowed to grasp that miracle with his hands.

"Will we find a new home, Yuuya?"

"Yeah… we will, I promise you." He couldn't turn back now; never again will the past affect him.

So for that reason Yuuya didn't shoot a second look to the Actives down beneath. Past memoires and friends had to be forsaken for his future, that was the only way of achieving the happiness he sought. The only road left after abandoning every other choice he had, determination will not be one of Yuuya's delicacies.

"Bridges, c'mon, let's go." Shirogane adjured for Yuuya to join the formation. Even in his final peek, he noticed a stranded Stella standing above her active gazing at his unit; but Yuuya's concentration was firm as before, because there was nothing left for him that way.

"Idar 1, Oscar Mike." Yuuya boosted forward to meet his new teammates, remembering and treasuring the final sight he saw of Stella; her smiling gently and sending Yuuya off with a middle finger.

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **05:04 AM**

 **Alaska, Soviet Base Б-01, Command center**

"Kapitan, the invaders just broke through UN's second line of defence."

"Did they now? That is most expected." Sandek's men paid no consideration to the slight discrepancy in his words.

"The enemy's ECM is blocking our communication arrays, we have no way of reaching the UN command."

"What about reinforcements from Anaktsuvk Base?"

"They already have been notified."

"Then there's not much left for us to do, comrades. We have half a Battalion left and a couple of Su-47s, let the rest of them fight and have the UN take over their duty of protecting this base for now." Sandek's train of thought made the most sense in contrast to any other plans.

"Yest, ser. I'll put order for the 11th Security Unit to move out."

"Good." If nothing unpredicted takes place for this next half an hour, the remaining Battalion won't be seeing another fight.

"The two of you, prepare for combat. The 47pzs are in Hanger C-3. We will personally test their abilities." Nonetheless, Sandek always prepared for the unforeseen.

"Yest, ser!" Two female voices replied to his call, both white-haired espers were ready, body and soul for the awaited reunion with their family.

"Prepare Su-47E, I'll head out as well. And don't forget, only capture the targets if a read can be observed. We don't have the time to waste."

"Komandir, there's something else about this team we need to talk with you about." Unexpected was the espers' further request, Sandek stopped one step short of leaving the control room.

"Speak outside." The two espers obediently followed him through the doorway.

"Sir, it is about the invading forces. Other than Inia, we have sensed something… nostalgic from them."

"What is it?" Sandek had no others to prepare for, none of them was waiting for his subordinates to spill into information.

"It's our kind, sir. We can sense Trista, she's part of the incoming Squadron." Wordlessly, the Captain processed this newfound knowledge.

"Trista Sestina… she was the one we sold off to the UN… I understand, now go get ready to sortie." Whatever Sandek decrypted from the esper's words, he didn't tell anyone.

"Da, Komandir!" The espers saluted him professional and headed off.

"…A homecoming, we'll need to prepare for that as well."

 **Takamura Yui**

 **05:08 AM**

 **Yukon Base, Command Center**

"We have… lost visual on Argos, Duma and Slechtvalk Test Flights. Overhead imaging cannot capture signature of their TSFs." The report of twelve defeated Eishis was nothing less than a brutal slap on Yui's hope, the slim likelihood of everyone coming out happy was now totally obliterated.

"So that makes a Battalion of surface fighters lost in total… within such a short time too, this is getting a bit scary…" Another operator commented on the efficiency of their uninvited newcomers.

"1st Lt. Takamura, I believe there are not many options left." to Yui's side, 1st Lt. Dahl was implicating for the proper procedure to be taken.

"In thirty seconds hostile ECM will overtake our position, comms will no longer be reliable once that happens!" Another operator shouted unfavourable upcoming events.

"I understand… wishes… become dangerous if I cling onto them. Sergeant, please request support from UN Alaska Command. Inform them, this invasion of unknown nature by possible ex-members of Project PROMINENCE." Yui addressed the CP officer for their situation to be announced.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Also, give all remaining forces on base lethal mandate. The 21st Security unit is to move out at full force. It is deemed the arrest of the invaders to be too risky." Yui's eyes were clouded since the very beginning, so even when her irreplaceable confidant was right before her; she was blind to the opportunity of a reunion.

"What other units can we use on base?" Yui asked next.

"From all registered armed TSF teams, the PLA's Bao-Feng Test Flight and US Army's Infinities Test Flight have yet to be mobilized."

"The Chinese and the Americans… can all this be interconnected…?" A logical deduction formed steadily in Yui's head, it would all make sense if what she intuited was correct. Her idea would be right, and also dangerous.

"At this rate, we'll have to ask them to fight as well." 1st Lt. Dhal said, the truth was something very close.

"Yes, it is unavoidable. I will contact them personally and ask for assistance. If they do not conform, then the possible damage will not be ours to bear." In that case, whatever fee China or the States had to pay will be forked over from their own pockets.

"1st Lt. Takamura, will you sortie yourself? Seeing as there's no units left for me." A good question posted by 1st Lt. Dhal.

"Yes… yes I shall. Call hanger 5, prepare my Type-00." The inevitable will happen, Yui must clash with A-01 to gain the truth.

"I intend to personally test them… the future of our Empire… cannot be submitted so easily."

 **Leon Kuze**

 **05:10 AM**

 **United States Army Hanger**

"Since the Yukon Command had to wake us up at almost five O'clock in the morning to take care of some trespassers who they didn't like stepping over their garden, I think it'll be fine if we asked them to at least pay for our fuel once we're done."

Listening to their leader, Keith Blazer's prop talk, Sharon quietly giggled at what Leon considered to be a below average joke. However, nobody could refute the fact that the Infinities did receive a call from central Yukon about incoming attackers who raised the base all the way to DEFCON 1 in just twenty minutes.

"Some Squadron of Japanese' Type-94 and a few Unknowns are flying around out there, they sound quite strong considering a bit of the Soviet and a Battalion of UN forces already fell. But now that we're called, there's nothing left but scraps for them to clean up afterwards." With good reasons, Keith was confident in his chances of winning.

"They requested for us to try and not kill the hostiles on sight, maybe go for capture. Although we do have deadly rights, just in case things go south. Let's do our best to make sure that doesn't happen." When the alternative was available, nobody truly enjoyed robbing the lives of others.

"Last thing, the Tangos are said to be in possession of anti-TSF jamming capabilities and stealth functions. Switch to proximity channel and off-wire Data link if they pull those moves. That's it, board up, Infinities."

"Yes, sir!" Complying with the First Lieutenant's order, Leon hopped on the ascending rope that lifted him all the way up to the F-22's cockpit.

"—who do you think is brave enough to attack Yukon Base without any planning though? They only got nine units, it's crazy to even try." Cutting in the comms while Leon checked his system, Sharon shared her view with the rest of the Infinities.

"—I think you mean stupid enough. But whatever, unlike last time, this attack seems to be solely acted out from outside forces. Besides, the RLF wouldn't pick the same target they failed at already, right?"

"—Leon's probably correct on this. But it never hurts to be too careful." Another transmission from Infinity 3, Guylos agreed with him.

"—we can discuss the politics all we want after those guys are dealt with. Don't forget our trip to Kamchatka is tomorrow, think of this as a warm up." Finally, their Flight leader was the last one to join the conversation.

"Alright, alright! Let's go! Or as Leon likes to say; the playtime is over! I'll clean'em up, nice and pretty!" When Sharon mocked Leon's catchphrase as a travesty, the rest of her team couldn't hold back their laughs; save for the victim, obviously.

"Hey, hey! What's that supposed to mean!?" Shouting at Sharon with a manly fluster, Leon was earnestly trying to float his fury through the cameras.

"I'm complimenting you here, you know? It's nice to have a boyfriend whose a janitor on his off-days!" It was just pure, unfiltered burn raining down.

"Puffuu… ahahahha! That was a good one!"

"Hehehehe, he does say that a lot." Both Keith and Guylos enjoyed the short comedy routine between the couple.

"Goddamn you assholes…" Robbed of any comeback after being fugitively destroyed, Leon hanged his head and accepted the waves after waves of laughter.

"Alright, people. That was fun, but we got to move out now. Infinities, statues check." The serious atmosphere was brought back without anyone missing a beat.

"Infinity 2, good to go."

"Infinity 3, system is fine, not seeing problems."

"Infinity 4, same."

"In that case, Infinities Flight, move out!"

 **Cui Yifei**

 **05:13 AM**

 **People's Liberation Army Hanger**

"Annneee-saaan! I only slept for two hours-aru!" Letting a big yawn out of her mouth, Lou loudly complained about precipitous mandatory assembly required from them by the repeating alarm.

"Gǔndàn (Get out). You gotta stop staying up this late just to watch your Korean drama. Where did you receive the signal from, anyway? It's not like broadcast from homeland can reach here." Yifei shut up her bun-haired junior before posting a question of her own.

"I have the entire series on disk! All nine seasons-aru! Let's watch it together next time, what do you say, Ane-san?" Yifei shook her head in letdown and ignored the supplementary nonsense.

"I still don't know who makes those. I mean, Korea is gone, right?"

"Indeed, probably the survivors living at Taiwan. They just can't let that tradition die, it seems." Lee, the more mature member of Yifei's team answered Wang's question.

Behind Yifei stood the four majestic Tactical Fighters of her Bao-Feng Flight, the Jian-10Xs that accompanied Yifei and her Platoon through thick and thin were again arranged to face against their new enemies.

When the entire Yukon Base was put on DEFCON 1 in the middle of the night, the startling alarm pulled her away from the comfy dream and back to her reality. Yifei soon after received a call from somebody she didn't wish to speak with in the slightest; Takamura Yui of the XFJ.

 **Non-chronological**

 **People's Liberation Army Barrack**

"—yeah, so? Just a couple of rats and you want us to clean them out? You think I'm here because I like having snow in my shoes?"

"—1st Lt. Cui… please let me finish—"

"It's Captain! Stop getting it wrong, 1st Lt. Takamura!"

"Captain, Cui, please allow me to finish."

"I already know what you wanna say! Just some invaders thinking they can strike this base when it's weak, your people should be more than enough to repel them."

"Yes, so far so true. However, you do not know the pilots of this invasion force."

"…and you do?"

"…that is up for you to decide."

"Whaaat? What're you saying. 1st Lt. Takamura?"

"When was the last time you met with Yuuya again?"

"…Haaa? Wh-why you ask that?"

"Because I have good reasons to believe you are about to meet him once more."

 **Chronological**

 **People's Liberation Army Hanger**

"Then how about you two-aru? Shaofeng, Lenmian?" Noticing her Captain was unwilling to enjoy a good flick, Lou turned her attention to the other two teammates.

"Méimén (No way). I saw enough of that crap with you. And besides, I don't really understand what they talk about anyway." One of them rejected the idea.

"Humph! Shaofeng is no fun-aru! Then Lenmian! Watch it with me!"

"Qù nǐ dǎyè de (GTFO). And my freaking name is Linmei, not cold noodles." It appeared that Lou's passion for Korean Drama wasn't a common find in the girls of Bao-Feng.

"This is so stupid… Bao-Feng! Attention!" Sick of the ongoing disruption before her yet-to-be-started briefing, Yifei called for the concentration of her crew. On her command, the three girls immediately stopped playing around and stood at attention.

"Listen up, people! The UN got some little cockroaches running around the base and since the previous attack pretty much wiped out their security detail, we got called in to help them exterminate the pests!"

Thinking back to her less-than-understandable conversation with Takamura, Yifei clutched her teeth hard in anger. What a humiliation she had to suffer, she'll make sure Takamura pays for this bother down the line.

When Yifei first picked up the receiver and heard the opposing side's voice, she almost threw it across the room due to pure detestation. After leaving her uninvited in the loop for so long, how dare Takamura just simply call back and ask for a favour?

"Since we're temporary living in their home, just think of this as paying for the rent. It's a Squadron of nine we'll be dealing with, five of the Japanese 94 and four Unknowns, the UN and the Soviets aren't sharing details so just assume for the four to be Third-Gens."

And to make matters worse, Takamura teased her about a reunion with Yuuya, something she knew Yifei just could never resist. So here she was, working overtime thanks the hope of earning her happiness.

"Another thing, Yukon wants these guys alive but not in exchange for ours. If things get tough out there; shoot to kill. They also got some sort of stealth system going as well, and I don't like that, not one bit." Biting her lower lips as she revealed another factor, the mock battle they had against Infinities still was a flesh wound in Yifei's heart.

"Just make sure to use a local signal when the public one gets jammed and don't trust your radar. Any questions?" The three girls all waited for another person to speak up.

"Very good. Bao-Feng Flight, embark!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:14 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, three klicks out**

" _Takeru-san, there're espers here. I sensed them but I don't know who they are._ " Interesting update from Kasumi indeed.

 _Got it, so does that mean the Soviets know who we are?_

" _I'm sorry, they most likely have an idea to our identities._ " Always the polite one, that Kasumi.

 _No, no. You did nothing wrong, Kasumi, don't feel bad. I'm gonna start talking now, we can discuss this later._

" _Okay._ "

"—I have given like seventeen pep talks in the last fifteen minutes, you all probably are tired of my voice. So I'll make shit simple here, we got maximum half an hour left to bring back the VIP. Thanks to our previous conservation of ammunition, we should have more than enough rounds… to go around." I received no reaction from that pun whatsoever.

"Ahem! Anyway, to review our strategy; the Soviet Base ahead is constructed in a circular formation with its Command Center right down the middle. Our objective is barrack A-2; Sestina, confirm again the location of your bedroom." When she prepared herself to give a rundown, I arranged the map of that U.S.S.R base for my team.

"—ah, yes. Barrack A-2 is located at the southwest side of Б-01, directly next to Hanger 3 which was where the Su-37 used to be stored. Our old cubicle is on the second floor's west wing." To Sestina's credit, she spoke calmly in a relaxed manner when briefing my team.

"So here's the plan again just for anyone who forgot. Flight A; which is me, Idar 1, Archangel 2 and Archangel 5 will infiltrate the Soviet Base straight on and wreak havoc from inside. To split that down further, Arc 2 and I; Element A will clear the immediate area around the barracks so Arc 2 can safety deliver the VIP. While Idar and Arc 5; Element B will distract all hostiles on site outside my area."

"In the meantime, Flight B; that's Archangel 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8 will patrol the perimeters to keep the UN reinforcements at bay, that is anyone late to the party from Yukon or the closest camps around. In that sub-group, Arc 3 and 8, Element D will form an element for long distance shooting and the rest are Element C, they will engage enemies at close to medium range."

It was a standard military tactic we planned to implement against Russians of PROMINENCE. Surround the target location, eliminate all unfriendlies on site, execute mission priority, prevent interference from additional forces, and withdraw once mission objectives are reached. It was a solid sounding idea, of course; hopefully reality will work just as beautifully.

"Once the pickup comes in range, Flight B will move to secure the eastern runway and provide cover for the aircraft. In case of Barchenowa's revival happening first, Flight A will rendezvous with B and relocate to the airstrip." Easy as pie, if I do say so myself.

"You all still remember the rules, right? Guerrilla warfare we got going on over this AO. I trust everyone here to make wise decisions in unexpected situations, don't let me down now, you hear!?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Excellent, time for a boss fight; let's see how Yukon fares when the guy from the dungeon challenges them instead."

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **05:19 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, outskirt**

Even during the constant downfall of snow throughout the land, fire from his jump engines burned hotter and brighter than the water molecules which were too heavy to stay afloat; frozen, during its descent down to the earth.

"—Idar 1, you have being spotted, five O'clock! Incoming Super Hornets, count four. Hanersy Test Flight! I cannot provide support as of this moment! Watch yourself!" A callout from Yuuya's Element buddy advised him of an approaching Australian Platoon.

"—Idar 1, roger. Moving to engage hostiles." As Yuuya diverged from the Purple Type-00, his final view of it was how two MiG-29s got slashed across their legs by the CIWS in its right hand and shot in the head by the gun in its left.

Looking ahead, Yuuya saw the quadruple TSFs blasting away their rifles in hope of landing an early shot for an early lead against the ex-test pilot. He wasn't going to be brought down in such an insulting fashion.

Yuuya boosted forward, fast and furious as he dodged the halls of metal. The engines attached to the Phase 3's lower back roared silently, overshadowed by the constant noise of oncoming wind spilt apart. A few evasive maneuvers paired with his jump units later, Yuuya closed the range enough for his EMP rifles to be used effectively.

The four F-18s just then reversed their impulsion, seeing as his Shiranui was unscratched by their collective fire. All four units changed their ploy to a rotating Circle-1 formation, each firing their weapons separate of another. Creating an augmented wall of bullets before Yuuya, who backed away to increase the distance.

"Tsk, not making it easy, these guys…"

"Yuuya, go straight ahead, I can take'em!" When a bit stuck on a good counter, it was Inia who suggested a plan as Yuuya evaded another few hundred rounds in succession.

"Got it, I'll leave weapon controls to you again, Inia."

 **Inia Sestina**

That method of fighting belonged to Yuuya and Inia; they were the second team who used it. Just like Cryska before him, she handled most the flying aspect of their TSF while Inia dedicated solely on downing their foes. The way they were was fine, all they ever needed was each other.

The Type-94 Second charged forward, perfectly eluding the lethal rain of 36mm as their speed turned their ride to a mere blur of flashing line. Yuuya pushed on, micro-turning his booster fins and adjusting the output on his shoulder thrusters, he danced in and out of the fire; literal flames caused by the F-18's 120mm and the barrier of 36mm.

When the endless pouring of rounds failed to stop the XFJ-01a in its tracks, four pilots of Hanersy started to seemingly panic, their formation exposed weak points and their movements lacked the organization of a calm team. The time to strike then naturally was given to the Japanese-American, for his preparation was flawless.

First came her bullets; while slow and missing the much necessary punch, Inia made sure to fire enough lead down range so their foes would eventually be overwhelmed by sheer quantity and unable to avoid all the shots. That was preciously what occurred.

The firepower of one TSF couldn't be compared to four TSFS, that was basic math at its finest. However, the accuracy of their aim was a whole different topic altogether. Inia didn't miss, not one round was wasted.

The Type-87 rattled off bullet after bullet with total precision. Overall, the two hundred seventy-seven EMP rounds she let out far out-weighted the value of countless slugs wasted by their conflicting Flight. The first F-18 unfortunately ate one hundred and thirty-three all over its body, leaving the Hornet's armoured shattered and its systems fried.

Next target; before it reacted, Inia dumped the remaining one hundred forty-four bullets into its physique. A bellow could be heard from both of the Aussie's jump jets following a light explosion indicating the unit's expiration.

"Yuuya! Spin us around and get next to them!"

"I know, leave that to me." A bright smile surfaced on Inia's features. Her and Yuuya were the best partners, just as how she worked together with Cryska.

"Let's go!"

Even closer now, the Russian esper felt that continuing to use her rifles would only be a waste of bullets at this length. She swapped over to the machine's forearms, where the retractable daggers made their appearances once more. To Inia, the feeling of a stainless edge was more pleasurable than any ranged arsenal could ever hope to provide.

Temporarily discarding the guns, Inia awaited for the second when Yuuya delivered her in range of this F-18E. Even over its pitiful spray of metal and horrified turnabout, her manually controlled knives lashed out against their witless prey. One stabbed below the midriff and another cut through its plates above the shoulders, Inia went for the decapitation and divarication of its upper and lower body.

Then before its pilot realized, they were already advancing on its scanners. Having witnessed all of its team perish powerlessly, the pilot of that TSF surely felt complied to not join the ranks of its fallen friends. Acting swiftly, the F-18 pulled its Close Combat Knife, using both of them in an attempt to return Inia's favour.

Its hysterical endeavour of a stab was just sad to watch, with little effort, Yuuya avoided both lunges smoothly and maneuvered in close behind their enemy. After inwardly laughing at the machine's poor pilot, Inia was overjoyed how their Shiranui was within the Super Hornet's personal territory.

Inia again displayed no sympathy as she sliced apart its left leg, taking along with it the left jump unit. Having just lost equalized propulsion from having two jets, their opposing craft spun around crazily without restraint on its bearings. Like a popped balloon, the metal husk drifted across the fly and eventually crashed down somersaulting into the earth.

A final action from Inia; putting a single bullet into the back of its head component, execution style concluded the dragged out fight.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

"—to Arc lead, Hornets clipped. Australia, Hanersy Test Flight deactivated." Once their battle was over, Yuuya reported back to the team leader over the channel.

"—Arc 1 copy, confirmed dead Aussies." A wordless chuckle slipped from Yuuya's lips.

"Idar 1 will now move to back Archangel 5, do you have update?" Now switching his focus to one of Shirogane's deputy, Yuuya asked to be briefed on their battle.

"—Archangel 5 reporting in, remaining fifteen MiG-29s. Currently engaging."

"Copy, Idar 1 is on station, ready to assist."

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **05:23 AM**

There existed nothing sharper than the sword in her heart, there was no such thing as an impenetrable shield in her presence.

Meiya dashed over the wreck of a MiG-29 Lastoshka only to doom another as her PB-Blade was relentlessly skewered into the Soviet TSF's limbs repeatedly until only its upper chest and cockpit were left.

However, an added dead equalled to five more living hostiles which were all out for her blood. Meiya whirled her machine over one more shower of lead, how many times she flickered only centimetres away from death was long since forgotten. The group of MiGs attacked from afar, too far for Meiya to put her sword or her low-velocity rounds to good use.

Pinned down by heavy suppressive fire, Meiya was finding it difficult to close the increasing distance without taking damage. She was somewhat fine with being injured on the battlefield, but losing to just some low-level security team surely didn't sit too well with the samurai.

"—Archangel 5, don't sweat it. I'll take care of those guys." By the call of Meiya's new teammate. One of the Lastoshka above her sky instantly lost power and tumbled down leaving behind a nasty sound of crashing steel.

Then the rest followed suit almost immediately after. One by one, the team of five MiGs were brought back on earth, leaving only Meiya's Type-00 afloat with another machine.

"MiG-29s, up minus five."

"—you have my appreciation for your well-timed support, Idar 1. I am thankful." Meiya spoke to the pilot of that Shiranui Second hovering just a bit higher than where she was.

"2nd Lt. Mitsurugi, you're really good yourself. Don't sell yourself short."

"Of course, I do take great pride in my abilities." Given a short break now they repelled another wave of defenders, Meiya had some time to rest.

Nodding to Bridges through the camera, Meiya cruised her Takemikazuchi back down to conserve her fuel. Bridges did the same in his Phase 3 as a wild-range scan was conducted by his more advanced sensory package.

"I'm doubling the dummy thickness in the radius of seven hundred metres. This should give us some breathing room." A hidden incentive from Bridges seemed to imply Meiya was in need of extra resting.

"Do not play me for an amateur, 2nd Lt. Bridges. Instead, I welcome their soldiers to face my foils." Meiya, however, felt more than prepared to continue combat.

"Oh, sorry then. I thought you were having trouble with them."

"Hardly, I am more than capable of defeating adversaries the likes of this. It is not us who we should be concerned for, conversely."

"Yeah, their main focus is still the barracks. Out of the current sixty-five potential hostiles remaining, twenty of them are somewhere here with us and another thirty are outside. The leftover fifteen have not joined combat for now." Bridges reported their up-to-date status to Meiya who wasn't all that interested.

"Hmph, with superior mobility provided by the XM3 have we came this far. Still, for there to be more than half undefeated enemies remaining is quiet disheartening." She sighed to herself, attacking a fortified; albeit not well fortified base was very demanding even with her team's firepower.

"Aggra, I really wish there's a way to speed this up! Or else… Cryska…" When Bridges showed an expression of angst, Meiya dipped her head once more to let her condolence be known.

"We cannot rush our attack, Bridges. All this will become futile if the people of Yukon discover our real identities before we achieve our objective. Only when we have extracted from this AO can they finally realize who we are."

"I know, I know. But there's also a time limit on us as well! Damn it, there's just no good way of making it work!" The American's upset was justifiable. Every tick of the clock was disadvantageous to Meiya's team, yet hurrying their procedure was not an option.

So far, the system of every TSF they defeated had been fried, leaving no evidence of the 13th Squadron left. On paper, Bridges was the only one who could create chaos amidst their overpowering foes as the disclosure of his machine's data was not of importance.

"Unfortunately, our help comes with its own detriment." Nonetheless, even Bridges wasn't going to take down so many frames without help; therefore, naturally their pace had to be slowed.

"Right, right. And I'm thankful for that, being given a second chance, I mean. If it wasn't for you guys… I would have never thought about having an opportunity of meeting her again." The sentimental time Bridges dwelled on was shared with Meiya, she knew just how joyful a reunion can be.

"Huhuhu, you have shown a great growth in mental… resilience from what I heard." During their short break, Meiya conversed with the American some more on random topics.

"Huh? Wait, what? You know me?"

"I have perceived tales of you from Takamura, she resided for five days in Yokohama where we met."

"Huu, I see. Yui probably said some… actually, nevermind." Bridges had a strange façade of confusion and impotent surrender.

"Hahaha, I believe it to be wise as well if you do not seek the answer you may not be prepared to hear." Finding their light discussion to be a fun one, Meiya laughed gently.

"Alright, let's cut the jokes for now. I'm sensing another Flight coming this way. Scan reads four F-18s inbound, COSEAN, then."

"—Archangel 5 to Archangel 1, incoming F-18 Flight, Garuda of COSEAN. Element B will engage." After the initial awareness of hostiles by Bridges, Meiya reported their discovery to Takeru.

"—Arc lead, got you. You have permission."

"Element B, roger. —Bridges, let us dance with another."

"Sounds good to me, Idar 1, moving out."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:26 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, centre**

"—Sumika, seven O'clock, multiple hostiles. Provide covering fire for me."

"—alright! I'll watch your back, Takeru-chan!" Her energetic smile was a good uplift in spirit for me.

One wrong step would be the death of me; one miscalculation of my velocity would condemn my team, this was the situation I had to work in. And an exciting fight to the brim was always enjoyable, no matter the condition.

Depleted uranium was truly a deadly material, and that was without being constructed into metal shells. Unlike my sub-sonic EMP rounds, the regular 36mm would tear right through a normal TSF's armour at melee range like a cold knife through butter. That was because my knives were the only hot ones during this skirmish.

The sharp edge of my PB halberd sliced off the Mount pylon of another poor MiG-29, its Eishi frozen in shock, failed to react fast enough and paid dearly when I tapped the frame's head with a solid burst of EMP.

"These bitches really don't have a limit!" Still, before I fully readjusted my sword for the next unfortunate machine, a barrage of bullets was already greeting me as a warning on my HUD.

A crew of F-14Exs had flanked to my blind spot, their formation and rate of fire made returning the goodwill nothing short of a chore. But boosting their way would allow another group of MiGs get the better of me, seeing as the pure number of red dots on my mini-map was already over a dozen.

"Sumika, think you're ready to finally fight on your own?" So naturally, I trusted my 00 unit to be plenty able with taking out a Flight of Second-Gens.

"Of course, of course! Hurry and give me the permission to fight'em, Takeru-chan!"

"What're you talking about? Everyone already have the authority to engage." It didn't make sense what she asked for me.

"No, no, not that! Say the other one, the cool sounding one!"

"Ahh, but it's so stupid!" realizing what she meant, I got embarrassed recalling back some of my interesting choices in vocabularies.

Pulling back on the sticks in a moment's notice, I flipped in reverse to cleanly dodge their line of fire and give Sumika the chance she needed to replace my location.

"C'mon, let me show you what this new frame can do! Be impressed, Takeru-chan! The Berkut is going to surprise you with its awesome awesomeness!" It was a sad day when I found out Sumika's disease of being stupid was incurable. I still love her, just makes the future difficult.

Still, looking at her enthusiastic countenance with those pearl-like round eyes filled with passion. I couldn't deny my exquisite robot girl of her time under the spotlight.

"Fine, fine… this's… urrga." It was like being forced to relive my chuunibyou years, terrible for my mental health.

"Taakeeeruuu-chaan! Let me have some fun too!" There was no other way, I had to gobble up this cringeworthy moment.

"As the fruition of my endless era, I hereby order you; Kagami Sumika as the 00 unit. Obliterate our enemies in the name of Alternative IV, everything is for the sake of our boundless future!" My body felt an unpleasant shiver. At least Sumika was enjoying my statement to the max.

"Roger, yay, yay! Takeru-chan!"

"Haarrr… go ahead and blow my mind, woman." With that, I released Sumika into the wild.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **05:26 AM**

"Mine! You're all mine!" The emotion Sumika was undergoing at that time was a tricky one to describe using the human language. To put it simply; she was hungry for… something.

Assault cannons were never a favourite of Sumika's. For one, they either killed too quickly for her to enjoy the flash of disappearing life or they weren't fast enough and got her into trouble when swarmed. For that reason, Sumika absolutely hated the EMP version of her guns which fired even slower than normal.

The four F-14s scattered in the face of Sumika's Motor Vanes, her pair of chainsaws sliced apart air as the speed she initially believed to be sufficient was in fact short on the distance it should have delivered her. All around, her targets took off towards the sky using their after-burners to avoid the disadvantage of facing her melee.

"DOOON'T RUUUN!" Yelling her impossible demand with joyous smile, Sumika unconsciously licked her upper lips with a swift swipe of her tongue.

Attached to the arms of her Su-47pzX1 there were her weapons of devastation, a shower of orange sparks bounced randomly as the blades spun up more fiery than ever. Her quarries were all above her; disorganized but higher than her reach. Not wasting another second, the Berkut powered up its rocket motors for an instant upward boost of energy.

Just as its name implied, Rocket booster thrust the TSF in the direction its user chooses like a rocket engine. The tempo it provided was incomparable even to after-burners on the jet engines of the Jump Units. However, the pressure an Eishi had to endure was also on par to the instantaneous velocity they gained, not something an everyday pilot could enforce casually.

"COOOME BAAACK!" Obviously, all that explanation was pointless in the eyes of Sumika. Living in a man-made body, things like G-force pressure or a rapid change in attitude didn't even register on her balance scale.

Eighty-five degrees positive was as vertical as Sumika needed to shorted the range between her and the F-14s. The four TSFs of MEC's Azriel Test Flight were powerless to stop the Su-47's dire climb when it already caught up before they got the chance to turn around and hamper her ascension with bullets.

On the equal horizontal plain now, Sumika threw the boosters in full reverse and composed out her momentum violently. Using another rocket boost, she soared through all four Tomcats before they were given the required time to evade. After all, there was nothing left they could do now, death was unavoidable.

One by one, Sumika only need four solid hits to kill her four targets. Just one strike, one connected strike was all it took to destroy. Takeru always told her not to play with her appetizers, after all; wait for the main dish and then toy around, he said.

First slash cut off a pair of legs completely; the second strike pulled the head clean off after lodging the vane in there; third carve detached the right main arm and Jump unit; fourth and final hit gouged away the lower chest armour of the last remaining TSF.

By the time Sumika passed the latest surface fighter in her own, none were left standing expect for her own. Both arms outstretched and both Motor Blades ultimately slowing down, she paused her machine for a few seconds to savour the sweet aroma left in her heart.

"—F-14Ex, Super Tomcats DICED! MEC Azriel, HACKED!"

Grinning pompously and maybe just a little cruelly, Sumika quickly calmed herself and hid away the secret aftertaste of ripping apart metal. This was her hobby, her cradle of elation.

But the time wasn't right, if she waited now, she was going to get to enjoy even more thrill and pleasure. Besides, only the smell of fuel and mechanical oil could be detected in the atmosphere; the flesh scent of blood was nowhere near.

There was something better, so much better than what was available now. Sumika knew because she tried it once, only once. The feeling was on a totally different level, nothing like the synthetic increase in hormone and neurotransmitter induced adrenaline rush she experienced just then. It was something basic; something to make her alive again.

"—can confirm, Middle Eastern, undone. Good, excellent, Sumika. Although try to keep them on the ground! I have to personally catch the cockpits!"

"Ahaaa, sorry, Takeru-chan! I'll be careful next time, ahehee!" Even though Takeru understood Sumika's less positive personality, she still didn't want to openly show it to her lover.

Thinking it over now, Sumika found her endeavour at shielding her other side to be funny; it was for her that Takeru spilt the teams unevenly like he did.

Guarding the outside was a relatively busy job, however having Kasumi and the rest on it was more than plenty. Patrolling the perimeter might sound threatening at first, but considering the sheer size to cover, Meiya and the other person surely were lacking targets.

So that only left Sumika and Takeru's Element, the most busy one with most firefights. Takeru knew that, that was why Sumika was here now; she wanted to slay more than anyone else on her team.

"You got additional fast movers inbound, Sumika. Reading shows F-5E ADV of EU's Garm, wanna take'em?"

"Ehh?! But Tornados are only First-Gens! I want your guys, Takeru-chan!"

"Shut up, the MiGs are mine. Don't touch them or I'll tape you naked to a pole!"

"Kyaaaa! Th-th-that's sexual harassment again, BAAAKAAA BAKA!"

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Author's note**

First, sorry to anyone reading on mobile for this hideous wall of callsigns, gonna put them somewhere. Also, I apologize for these chapters in general. I always skim over fighting scenes because they're never that interesting to read, and then I go the asshole route have eighty percent of the entire chapter as fight scenes.

Please, if you find this boring, just skip until someone talks. That's why every line of dialogue is the beginning of a paragraph, hopefully it'll save people some trouble. I'll try to make fights more interesting around Sado, most of Yukon is already written and I won't fucking be changing everything, maybe cut it down a bit.

The Yukon arc will end in three… four more chapters? I'll try to cut it a bit shorter since they're mostly action, and I can't write anyway. Not gonna lie, writer block is destroying me these days.

Also, I do kinda regret writing a TE storyline a little now… it's not my brightest moment by a long stretch. It's a bit restraining with its settings and characters, so much shit we don't know. Again, sorry people. It should be over soon.

I also like to remind people this entire story is told through a subjective point of view, that's why I always tell you who the character of that part is. So trust no one, they all be crazy for all I know.

BETA done by chad001. Do you know when a joke turns into a dad joke?

When the punchline becomes apparent.


	33. Turn around, every now and then III

**Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Yoroi Mikoto**

 **05:29 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, boundary**

"—mobile artillery. Watch out, get MSD." The thundering war wasn't fazing Kei in the slightest as she alerted Mikoto and the rest to the advent of another Platoon.

"—guided Shells! Guided Shells! 06, it's coming for you!"

"—thanks but my warning system already told me!" Chizuru might have just sent out her tip-off a tad bit too late.

Turning her boosters in full reverse, Mikoto dipped away just in time for the missiles to miss her chest armour and explode on the ground behind her instead. The set of F-4Es who fired the expensive tracking missiles pursued after Mikoto's Shiranui, likely demanding for her compensation.

"Yoroi, hold on a bit longer." To Mikoto's right, Kei was hunting after a similar F-4 with her halberd out. She was sure to get her kill a short while later, but that was the time Mikoto couldn't afford to spare.

"We're almost done here, Yoroi!" The same thing was happening to her left; Chizuru was busy duelling against the last F-4. She had succeeded in disabling one of the TSF's main arms, the rest will take just a bit longer though.

"Argga! Then just say I'm on my own!" Having trouble shaking her tails, Mikoto shouted half-jokingly half-angrily.

"Sorry, Yoroi! You gotta take them down!"

"Or you'll be fucked." Maybe what Kei said was much more accurate.

"Oh geez, thanks Kei-san!"

"…No problem?" As the use of sarcasm was a first for Mikoto, therefore Kei was confused by her use of never-before-seen attitude.

The only skill in Mikoto's inventory keeping her alive right then was her pure evasive maneuvers plus the XM3, neither of which she was short on, thus in her brain was not panic but plans. Plans on taking down her two chasers without being injured herself.

—

"…Yoroi, that was some Penny Tunes shit right there."

"Aaa -can't believe that worked!" Said Mikoto joyfully as she shot two dead Phantoms in the head.

"They got burned on your Jump Unit fuel… how did that even happen?" Chizuru too, was curious on the hilarious way Mikoto earned her kills.

"I just kinda improvised and spilled them on a low flight, had a good shot in and… boom!"

"Well, might as well report this now. —Element C to Arc leader. Egypt, Resheph Flight, liquidated."

"—Archangel 1, copy." Calmly, Takeru accepted Chizuru's update.

"By the way, what is Penny Tunes, Kei-san!?" Mikoto asked.

"Huh? That's… a… TV show, right…?"

"Waiiit, why you so unsure about it though?" As if her camera was a mirror, Kei reflected Mikoto's confusion perfectly.

"You don't remember…? The one with the bunny… I saw it as a kid."

"Hold on, hold on. You mean you saw it broadcast over national television in Japan?" Now interested, Chizuru became part of the talk instead of shutting it down.

"No… wait, I didn't… but… I kinda did?"

"Ayamine, I'm gonna test you for medications real quick, you mind?" Once in a while, even Class rep could make a funny joke.

"…It was like… I saw it elsewhere, can't remember the details… but it's true. I know it! I remember it from somewhere- it's just—!" Kei's rise in volume didn't go unnoticed.

"Hey, hey, hey! Calm down, alright!? It's not like we don't believe you, just cool off, there's shit to do right now."

"Right, right… damn, my head hurts a bunch… can I shoot up some mo—"

The second half of her sentence was overshadowed by another alarm beeping in Mikoto's cockpits.

"Talk later, people! Additional arriving forces, reading shows to be… PLA… Bao-Feng Test Flight!" Then was a strange hesitation in Chizuru's voice as she spoke out.

"Our Yankee… said these ones are good."

"Yep, yep! I heard the same as well!" Recalling back to their briefing, 2nd Lt. Bridges did warn them of PLA's Jian-10 Platoon's skills.

"Doesn't matter, guys! They're only another team of four! Let's go get them!" Escalating the team's morale, Chizuru called for their Flight to meet the enemies.

"Roger, I want some Chinese dumplings to go."

"Let's take on these guys too! Hooay!"

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **05:33 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, two klicks out**

"—stationary sentry, firing on hostile F-15s." Naming herself by her role instead of Callsign, Kasumi noticed a perplex Miki gawking at her.

"—urr… you mean yourself, right, Kasumi-san?"

"Yes, that's me."

"Please just say Gun Sweeper next time." Kasumi said nothing back. The bunny girl didn't let it show, but she really adored using strange epithets instead of proper labels normally associated with whatever she talked about.

"Your status, Archangel 8." Moving on from their previous topic, Kasumi asked Miki.

"Oh, right. Archangel 8, scouting nearby area for threats… ah! I see two TSFs approaching your six, Kasumi-san! Models are F-16s! Hakke Security force! I'll designate them for you!"

"Noted, engaging marked targets"

The silent, motionless Mount Pylons suddenly jumped to life the next second, its Type-87s loaded with live 36mms and 120mm APs, bullets Kasumi had yet to use in combat as they were shunned for their lethality. Something deplorable during this mission.

So it was not surprising for those mounted rifles to start firing on the forthcoming Falcons with absolute accuracy, just barely missing the cockpits. Her two foes were directly disabled with only four fast bursts to the head, arms and stomach region respectively.

"Shots on target, E.K.I.A. Confirmed F-16 Fighting Falcon, quantity two." Said Kasumi to herself in the cockpit which only she resided.

"Miki struck down three F-15s! Is your area clear, Kasumi-san?" Kasumi's wingman also reported her successful kills. From the gist of it, it was the remnant of a disseminated unit.

Finally, the last lingering lone TSF jumped out of its cover for a final showdown. And then was denied such esteem when Kasumi mercilessly lid up its armour plating all over.

"E.K.I.A. Confirmed F-15 Strike Eagle, quantity one. Remaining hostiles on site, zero." Operating just like a machine, Kasumi reported the outcome to contend Miki's worry.

"Ahh, thank goodness, I only saw three from here." About five kilometres away, there crouched another Shiranui, Miki's. Both arms of that TSF gripped the trigger and the handguard of her long range assault cannon. Even though she just fired three consecutive shots rapidly, the barrel of her sniper was still ice cold due to the EMP rounds she used.

"Should we reposition, Miki-san?"

"Err, I don't think so. I-I mean, this's a good chokepoint, right? Large groups of TSF have to come from this way! And with Takeru-san's jamming, we'll always have the upper hand!"

The way she saw it, the sharpshooter's suggestion was most logically correct. They locked down a pathway between two tall Soviet buildings, if any TSF hoped to skip their area, it would surely be spotted by other members.

"Roger, Archangel 3 moving to low-profile position." Kasumi piloted her surface fighter off the beaten path where she became much harder to perceive.

"Soo… errm, Kasumi-chan. What does E.K.I.A means?" An arbitrary trivial was asked by Miki.

"Enemy killed in action."

"Ehh? Doesn't that mean those Eishis are dead!?" Miki got reasonably worried about failing their mission objective.

"Enemy refers to the TSFs, not people."

"Ah, okay then. That's much better!" Scoring one hundred percent on her last QnA, Kasumi expressed no emotions of joy or sadness.

"Oh, another thing—" A warning appeared on Kasumi's monitor ahead of the rest of Miki's sentence.

"Not now. Sensors are captured inbound objectives. Miki-san, look to your three O'clock, eight hundred metres out." Promptly, Kasumi switched the topic entirely as she detected extra hostile forces closing in.

"Scanning! I got four identifications! …Oh, no… these are F-22As! US' Infinities Test Flight!" Kasumi didn't blame Miki for being a little surprised, the introduction of American stealth fighters could ruin many plans.

"Roger, do you have targets in sight?" Still, Kasumi acted tranquilly in the face of potential danger.

"Yes! I can only see three of them though!" The Raptors darting across Miki's retina was increasing in speed at an angle of fifty-five degrees east.

"Do you have a shot?" The same projection was shared to Kasumi, who also witnessed the F-22s.

"Yes!"

"Fire and then immediately move four-fifty metres sixty-seven degrees north of west within a timeframe of 2.3 seconds."

"Wha- wait, wait what?"

"Send the package. Now."

By Kasumi's command, Miki lined up perfectly one of the Raptor's glowing head and squeezed her trigger reflexively. A single bullet was already loaded in the chamber got ejected out the barrel at just below sound speed. The slug Miki fired was unbending, unwavering, unstoppable.

"Eh? I missed?" However, no TSF lost its connection in the next spilt second. Her bullet hit no mark at all and continued to fly aimlessly until it was brought down by gravity seven Kilometres later.

"I can't believe they dodg—"

"Archangel 6, evade now!" Miki didn't even think as her TSF picked itself off its feet and jump boosted almost parallel to the ground. It was because she heard Kasumi's call, the bunny girl never spoke louder than a whisper; so when she did, something was of utmost importance.

The following moment, the sheet of ice Miki sat just earlier exploded into a bright red. A hazy cloud of frozen dirt blown high into the air and slowly faded down, the shadow of an unseen Raptor paced over to where Miki hid seconds ago.

"UUWAAaaa! That was dangerrrous!"

"—Archangel 1, Element D have engaged hostile F-22As, Infinities. They have us marked, requesting support." When the cat girl lightly complained about her near-fatal experience, Kasumi radioed her leader for help.

"—Element D, negative. We have no reinforcements available, I can only disrupt their systems. Long range data-link hacking will conclude in fifty seconds, hold out until then." It seemed some time had to be brought before Takeru's rescue could arrive. While uncertain of their chances, both girls must do what it takes to survive.

"Copy, Archangel 3 starting assault." Kasumi clicked a few buttons to reanimate her Shiranui, an immediate sweep of her location was done after a short boot up. The LEDs embedded in the fighter's head acted as its eyes, searching for the subjects she had to clash against.

"Kaassumi-saan! I need help! They're gaining ooon meee!" In a truly panicking voice, Miki begged Kasumi to remove her shooters.

"Bait them to me, I'll take them once they're in range."

"Please don't miss!"

"I never do."

—

"…Fuck." For the record, Kasumi was a good girl. When Takeru taught her to properly express her emotions, he may or may not have done a terrible job at it.

Uncountable amount of both uranium bullets and signal interceptors filled the air as all four of Kasumi's cannons discharged all of their payloads continuously. This was her fighting style; often known in previous loops as the 'Lead Dispenser' (mostly by Takeru), she had seen her fair share of shredded targets done in by an unavoidable, contemporaneous wall of bullets.

Regrettably, the Infinities weren't on her list of confirmed kills. EMP, 36mm, 120mm and even her kitchen sink couldn't stop the advancing Raptors as they flawlessly danced out of harm's way. Each machine looking fabulous dashing past every missed round but deadly with every shortened metre.

They were closing in on Kasumi's pair, and it wouldn't look good for Kasumi's tombstone if it said she died of overconfidence.

"—retreat, retreat. Please run away, Miki-san."

"—I'm tryin— ugura! Really hard at doing that, Kasumi-san!" The Shiranui heading her way was being lid up by the flashing barrels of the Raptors, who were quite dedicated on bringing them both down.

"—Archangel 3 to lead, hurry with the support, please." One way or another, the sniper duos were somehow still alive by the end of a fifty seconds wait.

"—disengage hostile F-22s, Element D. All OS in your vicinity going down in five… four… three… two… one." On his mark, everyone in their immediate vicinity lost their intelligence update from shared data.

The Infinities' most essential advantage; their stealth capability was partly deprived when nobody got to use their mini-maps. Taking this erratic opportunity, Kasumi and Miki fled from battle when their enemies wasted some time being baffled by their disabled equipment.

—

"—Element D, can you confirm ECM quality?"

"Ye-yes! I lost my tails!" Takeru did his electric hacking magic and protected Miki from her pursuers.

"Alright, new orders. Arc 8 is to stay low for the time being and Arc 3 is to stalk the F-22 Platoon when they relocate. Think you can do that without being caught, Kasumi?

"Understood." Kasumi dipped her head to show consent.

"I'll tell you when they move, be prepared."

And now all there was left was to wait. Kasumi lightly danced her fingers over her sticks in anticipation, as soon as Takeru notifies her of the Flight's new bearing, she will silently tail them to wherever they were heading next.

"Heads up, they're exiting your AO."

"Archangel 3, dispatching."

 **Sharon Heim**

 **05:35 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01**

"—all units report in, my data-link just went offline." In her just now blinded Raptor, Sharon surveyed her surrounding as her system flopped.

"—Infinity 2, I lost my fire controls. Weapons are non-functional."

"—Infinity 3, my guidance is down. Combat intelligence isn't coming through."

"—Infinity 4, sensors are dead, can't see expect for visual targeting."

Everyone in her team was suffering from variant complications originating from the sudden loss of their computing hardware, each problem varied from one another but all of them caused the test flight to lose their pair of targets.

"Ahha, they got us good. Cease pursuit of hostile units. Reset system, starting from Infinity 2, I'll go last." Her leader, Keith gave out order to restart their F-22s which was the only way of fixing it.

—

"—boss, that confirms it. This team matches up with what we have on tomorrow's objective." Having reorganized themselves, the Infinities were back to business before Guylos reported his assertion. Apparently he just got off a call with somebody, however Sharon was not allowed anymore details.

"Yeah, this makes things really complicated. Damn them collars, throwing this crap at this." Under his breathe, Keith was upset over some matter.

"—wait, what's going on? I thought this's unrelated to tomorrow's operation." Being as uninformed as Leon was, Sharon seconded his question.

"Turns out, these guys are not just your run-of-the-mill militia Squadron. This is unconfirmed but seeing from the wild-area jamming, Data-link based attack and that unit's movement, top-brass believe them to be the UN's A-01 Special Task Force."

"The UN… is attacking its own army base? How would that make sense?" Sharon wasn't the only one confused by the new reveal.

"I wouldn't know, although the high-ups are very sure that this team is currently in possession of the only other 94 Second model available."

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking. Who are the higher-ups here?" Leon; unhappy about the source of their information asked.

"The DIA suits are feeding us the intel. As far as we should be concerned, all they're telling us is true. At least for now when our interests still aligns." Huffing unpleasantly, Leon found nothing else to go on about.

"So that means they were the team during the 12/5! Oh, wow! I always thought the 66 Hunter Report was… well, exaggerated."

"Why would you think that? The 66th Armoured Battalion was the most relevant team during the Japanese coup d'etat." A quick affront by Leon made Sharon meek her eyes and gaze back lazily.

"Uur, if you say it like that, anything sounds bad!" Sharon puffed her cheeks at Leon much to the others' dismay, maybe there was a better time and place for flirting, just maybe.

"Ahem! Moving on, the Hunter Report paired with the info recovered after the CIA's displacement claims that a single UN Japanese surface pilot hijacked the 94 Second from the CIA's Test Flight, returned to combat with the Japanese Shogun and was generally disruptive to their operation."

"Heh, the DIA don't like their Langley counterparts too, huh?" In a mocking manner, Leon understandably laughed at the CIA's failures.

"Another factor is these guys' movements. The UN recently invented a new Operating System titled the XM3 and traded it to us for… something else. It's said to increase piloting performances by a great margin. Funny thing is, we were supposed to field test the OS. But here it is, right before us in the hands of another team."

"So we can take their system after taking them out?" Sharon threw the right question to her Flight leader.

"Something like that. Now normally none of this would matter, but as luck would have it; our mission tomorrow is to recover the Shiranui Second Phase 3 from a UN team operating in Kamchatka, this exact team, actually."

"Huuh? We're supposed to hit them after they made their pickup? Then why're they here?" Leon confusedly asked.

"Best guess is the UN also planned its own course, probably had their team mobilize early and already got the package." All of a sudden, a mental light-bulb was lid in Sharon's head.

"Then that means this is our goal! If they're hitting us right now, both the Phase 3s are on site Along with the Russian Berkut!"

"Correct. The guys up top said if the Phase 3 is here, the Su-47 is here too. They delivered themselves right into the net so we are saved from an overseas trip, capture the Soviet espers of the Su-47 and one of if not both the Shiranui Phase 3. That's your updated order from command, people." Unenthusiastically, Keith no doubt repeated what was said to him for the rest of his team to hear.

"That means Yuuya is…" A connection was formed by Leon at last.

"Uh-huh, your old buddy is definitely here."

 **Cui Yifei**

 **05:37 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01**

"—leave the small fries for clean up later! Bao-Feng! Break through!"

"—roger!"

As Yifei shouted her orders thrillingly for her Flight mates to hear, the Type-77 Battle Halberd in her Jian-10's hands locked itself with a Japanese PB wielded by the Shiranui opposing her.

"Aggra! I don't have time for this! GO AWAY!" When it came to brute force, Yifei's sword was destined to win nine out of ten. And just like her prediction, the Type-94 gave in first as its arms bent away from the pure power.

"Bao-Feng 2, Fox 3 on Bogey 1! Pin down the missile container! Melee's not a problem!"

Taking this spilt second chance, Yifei struck hard and fast towards the open chest of her opponent. Unfortunately for the Chinese girl, the Shiranui by some means jump boosted away from its death just in the nick of time, much to the displeasure of Yifei.

"Damn it…! Bao-Feng! Follow me and move up!" Nonetheless, having made room for her team, Yifei ordered everyone to continue advancing.

"Roger!"

Grasping this one chance where the an opening was smashed clear in front of her, Yifei charged her TSF pass the three 94s with an instant Rocket Boost. The shock in her stomach was nothing compared to reaching her destination minutes faster.

The rest of her team lined up closely behind her, streamlining on her tail for reduced air resistance. In the blink of an eye, the Four Chinese frames had already ditched their opponents in the dust.

"—Ane-san, you're overly excited about this, you know?"

"I saw him! He was there! Yuuya was right there!"

"Huhuhu, not gonna get through to that. Give up, Yahua."

"—yeeep, no chance, Ane-san is burning up right now."

"—aha… ahaha, I still don't get this…" Knowing the futility of attempting to speak logic at this stage, Yifei's subordinates all quieted down as their leader was in her moment of heat.

Surveying their AO before jumping into the action was the single best decision Yifei had ever made. On the outskirts of the Soviet Base, she saw an Element of units fending off two Test Flights. The marvelous maneuvers and breathtaking strikes could only be the work of one man, Yifei's husband.

"When we get on site. You all can have everyone left, but leave the Phase 3 to me, got that?"

"Roger~" Her team's joyful reply was of no concern.

She had already decided to forgive him for his affair as long as he listens to what she says from on now, so there was only a side punishment for Yuuya to suffer through before the two of them could reunite once more.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:38 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, centre**

"—Capt. Shirogane! We only have twenty minutes left on the clock! How's your process!?" In my ear, Bridges was shouting up a storm. His expression was worrisome in the most intended meaning.

"—I know, I know! We're almost done here, only a few more F-16s. We just have to get to the building and load in the VIP, how's your end?" As I stuffed another one of them 29s with my non-lethal 36s, the left gun in my machine's hands reported back empty.

"The Gripens and MiGs are almost dealt with. We can get some breathing room soon." Bridges and Meiya were of no assistance during that time, maybe in a few more minutes.

"—Arc lead to Element C, how's your side of things?"

"—urrga! Casualty! Ayamine's right arm is damaged, also damn eagles are everywhere! They saved up the rest of their security force! A Flight of J-10s just slipped us by, they're heading your way, be careful!" Class rep was having no fun time in her battles.

"Element D, Kasumi and Tama. Report." I checked up with the sniper combo next.

"—hostile Raptors are closing in on your position, Archangel 1."

"—Archangel 8! Massive numbers of enemy reinforcements inbound! Counting at least two battalions twenty minutes out! Our pickup is about to enter the Yukon airspace!" Kasumi and Tama both reported deleterious updates to our mission.

In conclusion, we were running a bit behind schedule with dudes coming from every angle. And it was probably my fault, I was overly optimistic about our chances considering the massive advantage we owned against their forces. Despite that, we still had victory well within reach. As long as I play my cards right, the checkmate was mine alone to enjoy.

"Attention, all units. New mission plan is as follows: my Element A will now breach the Soviet Barr—" What cut me off from giving out the rest of my orders was an interruption; an interruption in the shape of a 120mm.

Pulling straight back on my sticks, I barely avoided the payload as it sailed just harmlessly pass me by and exploded a snowy hill off in the distance. Following the trajectory taken by the shell, my view was led to nowhere as if the bullets heading for me were puffed into existence by magic

"Arrgga! What the hell! Who's…!?" Quickly leaping away from further danger, I transferred my emphasis to the display appearing above my retina. The mini-map still showed failed to detect anything in the form of a TSF or otherwise.

"Archangel 3 to 1, hostile Raptors in your immediate sector, please confirm visual." Then half-way through my moment of shock, Kasumi delivered news that was more awful in comparison.

From some distances away, my zoomed-in optic finally showed the images of two F-22As on fast approach. The loss of my intelligence gathering was almost certainly the fault of those stealth assholes, albeit I was one myself.

"You gotta report that waaay earlier next time, woman!" Recollecting myself as I regained my composure again. My YF-23 twirled out of cover and popped a few shots down range toward the American frames.

Looking down at my remaining munitions, the signal interceptors were low on the decline with second missed shot on those F-22s. My duel firepower of cannons was not doing a good enough job of slaying the Infinities. Their Eishis must had been skillful too, seeing as their pair danced around my aim and the returned shots were more accurate than most.

"Arc 3, your position." A bit of help was greatly appreciated at this point.

"Currently thirteen hundred metres out, on station in five seconds." At least Kasumi wasn't getting slammed down.

"Arc 2 and 3. I'm authorizing specialized combat enhancement. Do your Pra—" For god knows how many times today, another bombardment cut me off at a crucial point. My unit almost took a hit on its right booster if not for the fact that I was already dodging shots from the Raptors.

Surface jumping high into the air, the scanners outside my TSF just reported the presence of four PLA J-10Xs belonging to the Bao-Feng Flight. Their leading unit was furiously chasing after my ass with its sword raised and after-burner turned to its max. Based on Bridges' details, whoever commanded the Bao-Feng was a personal friend of his.

"Arc leader, repeat your last." From somewhere my eyes were blind to, a ray of shells fired with the goal of striking down the Chinese were avoided nicely. Kasumi's Shiranui provided covering fire as I back further off from combat.

"What did you just say, Takeru-chan!?" Sumika did a rocket jump as well and were on the same plain as the rest of us.

We three took a defensive formation by compulsion against both forces aiming their rifles, a short standoff between our three factions quickly turned to a two-on-one in the defender's favour. Bao-Feng and Infinities had their guns at the ready, so did we as neither side moved anymore closer into firing range of the other.

"All units, listen up! Element A plus Archangel 3 will continue engaging with hostile units by the Russian barrack. Element B will secure the outer perimeter and link up with Flight B heading for the LZ, so will Archangel 8." This plan must be solid in comparison to the rest, as this was the final stand.

"Roger!"

"You two, I'm leaving this immediate combat zone to you. You have permission to activate Prafka or whatever it's called, no limiters will be placed as long as you two stay safe, got it?" Desperate times calls for desperate methods, and no matter how I hated to admit; the time for a trump card was now.

"Archangel 3, roger. Preparing injection." Kasumi bent down and pulled out a pouch from a pocket in her control seat.

"Yaay! Finally, finally! Watch us and be impressed, Takeru-chan!" Happily satisfied, Sumika had her syringe filled and ready to go.

"I never have seen this Prafka or whatever in action so I don't know how much I can depend on it. But what I do know is how much I can depend on you two. So go out and crush everything… prove to me, just how much your love is worth." Quietly, I muttered the last lines of encouragement.

"Yes, sir!" Both girls answered with a firm salute, not a hint of regret or waver emitting from either one's eyes.

"I'm leaving my back to you now, as I have done before and like how I will for the rest of eternity."

 **Cui Yifei**

 **05:38 AM**

"—hey! You stealth zoomies! Identification!" There existed no reply for a bit longer than acceptable after Yifei's demand was posted.

"—United States Army, 65th Combat Training Battalion, Infinities Test Flight." Yifei took a second to contemplate just how terrible her luck was.

The four Jiānjí shí xíng belonging to her Platoon hovered closely to the Americans, both had their frontal view set on the intruders, but their rear camcorder watching the other team for sudden movements. Even if they happened to share the same objectives, it didn't mean they must cooperate.

"So it really is you people, huh? We're PLA's independent Test Flight, Bao-Feng!"

"If I remember correctly, 1st Lt. Cui, right?" The same mature male voice was transmitted to Yifei.

"It's Captain! Capt. Cui now!"

"Then I apologize, Captain. As we're not free right now, I suggest we work together and bring down the invaders together. My element will follow your command." The Raptor pilot recommended an idea Yifei had herself, however being first brought up by their side made the deal look that much more suspicious.

"Heh, whatever you're gonna try, it ain't working, got that?! What're your callsigns?!" Still, having US's best Third-Gen stalling the Berkut and Type-94 sounded great, especially considering that will give her plenty of time to go after Yuuya.

"Infinity 1 and 3." The F-22 painted itself and its wingman for Yifei to recognize their names.

"Bao-Feng 1 to 4." So she did the same for her side.

"The number advantage is on our side, Captain. I recommend for you team to attack head on and we'll flank from the sides, our stealth capability is on par with theirs."

"Alright, that plan sounds feasible! The 94 Second is a melee type I'll take care of it! You people can have that Su-47 since it's probably what you're here for anyway!" Enlivened, Yifei had zero interest in the Scarlet twins. Instead, it was Yuuya she wanted more than anything else.

"If that's the case, you should go chase after its owner right now."

"Huh? Wait-wha—!" For maybe a blink when Yifei took her focus off her monitors, the Phase 3 had somehow decided to hightail out of that combat area.

"Are you KIDDING ME!? YUUYA!" Uncaring whether the Americans heard her scream or not, Yifei boosted full force after escaping prey.

"—Ane-san! Hold oon!" When the cries from her Platoon had reached her ears, Yifei long since shut out any irreverent distractions standing between her and Yuuya.

Charging straight in there without a care for the world, the curved arc sketched by her sword through the air was like no other. She pushed forward bravely against the immeasurable quota of gleaming bullets and combustible shells as they blocked her path forward.

When its rifles were not fulfilling the need of stopping Yifei; her foes, the Scarlet twins threw away their guns and ejected the Soviet's iconic Motor Blades to face her in CQC. With his escape covered by the twins, Yuuya slipped away right before Yifei's vision.

"AGrrra! Scarlet Twins! Outta MY WAY!" No reply greeted her from the TSF she locked blades with. Two chainsaws were stuck on her Type-77, both units pushed strenuously against the other in hope of earing an edge to chain their next strike into.

Yifei didn't care for the battle raging on between her team and the remaining Shiranui at all. In reality, she completely forgotten the existence of her reinforcements until a 120mm forced the Berkut to pull away in fear of exploding.

"Bao-Feng 1! Don't neglect your advantage! Work with us and we can take'em both down in no time, then you can go after the Phase 3 all you want."

"Nuuua, fine! You guys can keep the 94 pinned with your firepower. —Bao-Feng Flight! Surround that 47 and hit it!"

"—alright, roger!" Energetic as ever was her subordinates.

"Infinities, copy." The Americans never knew how to have fun, anyway.

Facing her foes once more, Yifei burned with fury at the thought of coming not even second on Yuuya's choice of female companions. All faults were instigated by the Scarlet Twins, and revenge right now would go great with Yifei's soon-to-be victory.

"Damn you Commies… if it wasn't for you, Yuuya would've never left!" releasing her stored resentment unreasonably on the twins, Yifei again armed herself with a halberd and a gun in her attempt to perpetually separate her husband from his mistresses.

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **05:41 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, outskirt**

"—area cleared, negative hostile presence detected. 2nd Lt. Bridges, well done, now activate a sector pulse reaching outwards with a radius of nine hundred metres."

"—I swear, you're like a more demanding version of 1st Lt. Takamura." Unfitting for him, Yuuya actually complained about his company.

"Are you unsatisfied?"

"Haa… no, I'm just trying to not think too much about anything right now."

"It must be strenuous to struggle against your former allies, you have my condolence." Mitsurugi was implicit to Yuuya's dilemma.

"I'm not here to regret my decisions, Second Lieutenant. If they have to go for Cryska to come back… well, that's just unlucky."

"Great resolve comes from the heart, Bridges. I respect your ability to withhold your own hesitation for love… unlikely as it comes, perhaps I could also learn something from your behaviour."

"Huurm… how about you not saying that out loud?" A soft giggle from Inia caused Yuuya's blush to deepen in colour.

"Huhuh, there is nothing to be ashamed about your feelings, Bridges. Granting that Takamura drew the short end of this stick, there is no fault to be placed on you personally."

"Why does all this have to do with her? Did something happen to Yui or whatever?" All Mitsurugi did was shaking her head mockingly.

"…Density, density. A measurement word, take it however you will, 2nd Lt. Bridges."

"What you even—" His sentence was then broken, enormous tension made Yuuya pause his mouth.

"AH-AH-Ahhh…! Y-Yuuya! Something… something's trying to get inside my head!" That moment, there existed no distraction which could draw away Yuuya's attention. Inia perspired heavily; the pain-filled gaze she emitted transferred her suffering in its entirety to him.

"Inia! What's going on!? Hang on, just hang on, okay!?" The ensuing trepidation was not easy on Yuuya's mind. As knowledgeable as he was on matters with the espers, he simply couldn't help Inia with an injury on a non-physical plain.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha, I-I-I'm fine… Yuuya. Thanks to Trista and Sumika… they synced me in to their projection… so others like us can't intercept my signal… but it hurts… it really, really hurts." Unsure of her meaning, Yuuya was lost for an orthodox way of helping her.

"2nd Lt. Sestina, is there anything to be done which can ease your pain?" Calmly over the radio, Mitsurugi asked.

"Urraaa...! No… haaa-haaa, not really anything…" Inia said rigidly, her irregular breathing was tired and burdensome.

"Then I shall pray for you to overcome this agony, Sestina. Bridges, allow her to rest."

"Yeah… give me full control, Inia. You just stay healthy, alright?" Accepting Mitsurugi's proposition, Yuuya gently patted Inia's head from behind.

"Okay… there's one more thing though, you need to… get him for Cryska, right? There… look there." Weakly pointing the camera out in a distance, Inia tagged three passing TSFs seemingly uninterested in the Phase 3 and Type-00.

"Wait… those are…" Following her hint, Yuuya zoomed in to confirm the movers just outside his detection range. From here, it was too far away to even identify what faction the trio of surface fighter belonged to, only their models could be barely distinguished.

"It's Sandek and more of us, Yuuya. The black one… that's his." And there was a black painted Su-47 guarded by two white ones.

"Inia, you can tell from here?"

"The other two… I never met them before, they are designed differently. Their goal is to shutdown others, others like me." Taking an even closer look, the three Berkuts made no move to come in range for engagement. They simply idled in place, unconcerned by the vicious battle going all around.

"So that's him, you sure about this?"

"Absolutely, I can't sense him directly, but those two know it's him."

"Thank you, that's really convenient for us. —Idar 1 to Archangel Lead, we have confirmed visual on HVT Captain Jerzy Sandek. Permission to engage?" Next logical step was to call Shirogane on his opinion.

"—Granted. You go get him, Bridges."

"—please hold, Archangel 1. 2nd Lt. Sestina is greatly fraught under unknown influence by the HVT's protection detail. I am against sending Idar 1 to combat." That was a vital detail almost missed entirely if it wasn't for the samurai girl.

"Okay, makes sense. Idar 1, you been denied permission to engage. I'll personally grab his ass and get Barchenowa back. Element B will continue defending off any intruders to us." Pulling Yuuya and Inia out was the most sensible choice of them all.

"Copy that. I'll tag the fighter for you, it's a black Berkut. —2nd Lt. Mitsurugi, are you coming?" Ending connection with the team captain, Yuuya went back on the line between him and his Element colleague.

"—eyes up, Bridges. What do you see?" Confused by her random request, Yuuya followed Mitsurugi's tracker and noticed at least two dozen dots of flashing light even further away than the Su-47s.

"Ah, shit. Hostile reinforcements, they're here too early, damn it!"

"I believe not, our combat timer has ticked for much longer than we have realized." Still unworried, Mitsurugi stated her view cleanly.

"—Archangel Lead, update. Hostile Su-27s inbound, counting at minimum one Battalion." This information also must be passed on to Shirogane for his analysis.

"—for real? That is no good. There's another group heading in from the south. Change of plans, Idar 1. I'll apprehend Sandek and bring him to the Soviet barrack, you can deal off them south-side support." The man's speech was funny and all over the place as always, even for Yuuya who only met him not a day ago.

"—what role do you have in store for me, Archangel 1?" Adding herself to the conversation, Mitsurugi had separate jobs to do.

"Archangel 3, return to the north centre of Б-01, Arc 2 and 3 are fighting to secure the barracks. Help them."

"Understood, Captain." Mitsurugi respectfully accepted her order. Shirogane ended the connection since he had nothing else to say.

"May fortune guide your path to victory, Bridges. I shall waste time no longer." Already dashing off, she offered Yuuya words of courage.

"Un-huh, you too, Mitsurugi. Go get them." Yuuya couldn't afford to waste anymore time, his mission must be done ahead of the clock. Cryska's life hung on the balance, his effort to bring about true happiness couldn't be wasted here.

"Inia, you okay now?"

"Ahhha, I'll have to rest for now, Yuuya. Sorry for not lasting." The esper in his care was still feeble from the mental attack she withstood.

"That's okay, you should take a nap. I can handle this." Gradually picking up speed, the Shiranui leaped away from its Element buddy as Yuuya stepped harder on the pedal.

"I believe in you, Yuuya. Cryska and I… patiently await our tomorrow." Drifting away, Inia made her last words known clearly then fell asleep.

"You will have it; I won't leave this place without it." Talking only to himself now, Yuuya promised once more the fragile future for everyone in his heart.

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **05:40 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, centre**

"—is this… really the limit, Kasumi-chan?" Sumika bitterly mumbled into her microphone. It should had been all but a revelation for her, yet she was still upset by the lack of ability she possessed.

Outnumbered and missing backup, Sumika scarcely eluded the aerial scan by the F-22s. She was forced to conceal herself in the heavy ECM as some fighters flew her by, only their shadows overlaid on top of the Su-47's crimson paintjob.

"—I'm sorry, predictions indicate disabling damage to be unavoidable in ninety-seven seconds." Sane as she always was, Kasumi replied.

Archangel 3 was just south of Sumika, the exact distance was one hundred fifty-two metres measured by their Data-link. Kasumi too hid low, out of sight from the patrolling Jian-10s. Her unit was still undamaged for now with only scrapping messing up the decoration. However, Sumika understood the same situation will not stay for long; it cannot repeat itself anymore.

"…Ahaha, your math is getting bad, Kasumi-chan. It should be ninety-eight point five-three seconds." Calculation on two after the decimal point was possible for the supercomputer in Sumika's head.

"I apologize."

"No… I'm sorry for wasting our time like this, even though we're so short on it."

She got cold feet right before the activation of Prafka, as many often do when faced with a major predicament. The power was so sweet, the strength she would gain from it vastly outshined what she was capable of doing on a regular basis. With Prafka, Sumika and Kasumi would be unstoppable. They both knew.

"It's okay, Sumika-san. We did our best, let our other selves do the rest."

But that wouldn't be her power, she thought the last minute before plunging the needle into her neck. Whatever amazing power she would receive from the effect wasn't hers. It belonged to the Russians, after all. If this loop ended in failure like every other one before it, she would be made to forfeit this gift she sought after for so long.

"Are you not scared of the change, Kasumi-chan? You don't have to like it because I do."

So Sumika tried, she tried her best along with Kasumi at defeating their foes using own their skills; it wasn't enough, nowhere good enough to eliminate a Flight of J-10Xs and an Element of Raptors. All that had led to now, this pitiful moment when the pair fled from combat.

"It doesn't matter. We have to win no matter what, the time left is short now." That was never closer to the truth.

The freedom to select was gone; that right will be consumed for all those who cannot achieve victory. Sumika couldn't allow it to come to pass. In the face of her one and only lover, the 00 unit masked a brave and cheerful demeanor who thought little of taking other's lives when demanded.

"Why… did I have to turn out like that? All I ever wanted was to be happy with Takeru-chan… I… didn't always like killing."

Despite her fake outlook, truth was that Sumika did care. She hated bloodshed just as she always did, even before becoming the android she was now. Yet the Sumika currently was deprived of that innocent self. She couldn't help but enjoy the shower of gore as bodies fell to the earth with a lump thud, that delight was what she breathed for.

"But you do, and that's okay too. Takeru-san said so."

No more reluctance, no more hesitation. Sumika had to kill others down to an inch of their lives. As long as they don't actually die, she could do anything she fancied.

"You're right… I have to accept my urges. This's who I've become." The 00 unit exhaled deeply, her mental burden finally released. The path to true victory was laid out with corpses, corpses Sumika must fabricate herself.

"Let's go, please bear this lust with me, Kasumi-chan."

"Make it feel good for me too, Sumika-san."

In sync with one another, the syringes had their plastic covers removed and the needles examined for sharpness. The two injectors in both girls' hands functioned as intended when Sumika and Kasumi stabbed themselves in the necks decisively, knowing this to be the right thing to do.

With a push of the nozzle, Sumika watched intensely as the piston ejected a thick-liquid like serum into her prosthesis bloodstream. The pain was little in contrast to what Sumika had suffered ages ago, a light prick on her skin at best. Belatedly, the entirely of the needle became hollow, all of its drug infused into Sumika's body.

"Ahh-haa… Ka-Kasumi-chan…! How d-do you feel?" The breath caught in her throat was expected, the pain will soon be washed away and replaced by something much better.

"…I'm— fine. We should start." Wearily, Kasumi answered.

"Yes, we have dedicated everything for the sake of Takeru-chan… you should rest now, I promise… this feels really good."

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **05:41 AM**

"—my apology, Kapitan. Inia rejected us completely; she wouldn't answer to our calls." The gloomy expression of one esper was hidden well as to not be observed. Sandek however, knew she wasn't too happy over the broken link.

"—it matters not. If she refuses cooperation, we have no choice but to end it here. What cannot be controlled holds no worth." Sitting in his own Su-47E, Sandek couldn't help but be disappointed in the outcome.

He wanted to have her back, the one that got away. Inia Sestina was still to this day the second strongest esper, beaten only by the brightest of them all. She should have been an easy target, without Cryska Barchenowa's help, a single esper couldn't withstand the influence of Sandek's new tools.

His espers had tried it, to manipulate the defected doll via telepath. What they suffered was a failure to communicate, Sestina simply didn't respond back. Either she heard the message and declined a reply or the thought never made it through, both were the same now.

"—sir, what are we to do about the remaining enemies? They have dispersed."

"…It wouldn't be much of a threat with the UN forces and our backups on their way anyhow. We will repel all hostiles within close proximity to Б-01, everything else the UN can deal with." By his command, the twin Berkuts lid up back to life.

"Yest, ser."

—

"—Komandir Sandek! The 25th Battalion, Tuman from Anaktsuvk Base just arrived! However, they're taking massive casualties from a hostile unit!" A few minutes down the line, as Sandek and his group were almost within reach of the Soviet base, a call for help made by their Command Centre was transmitted to Sandek's comms.

"A single hostile? What model is it?"

"It's an Unknown, sir! One of the two we couldn't identify!" By this point, news such as this should be all but relevant to Sandek's cause.

"Where is the unit?"

"It's… headi— right ove—you, sir—" There was something present in close contiguity which ruined his comms. That was the Unknown giving their 25th Battalion trouble, this unit was close.

A single machine soared through the sky, another dozen chasing in the shadow of the first. Rapid flashes from the discharge of metal shells lid up the firmament like an American holiday, everywhere visible explosions big and small dominated the atmosphere. Relentlessly, the lone craft fought off overwhelming odds with nothing but a pair of rapiers.

Despite its disadvantage in number, that one TSF still was in control of its combat. By watching the overall movements of their fight, Sandek could tell this frame was fighting to reach his own position.

"—Lisitsa 1 to Anaktsuvk 25th Battalion, Tuman 1, do you copy?"

"—Lisitsa 1… Kapitan Sandek!? You've taken to the field personally?!" To uninformed soldiers, Sandek hadn't flown since his days as a Major.

"Yes, this situation demands special attention. Now what is your status?"

"We have been engaging this hostile fast mover for minutes now, sir! It's just too nimble and agile, my men can't get good shots on target!" Often, surface pilots skilled above the rest found it easy to evade against larger numbers of enemies during a dogfight. However, to remain unharmed when targeted by a whole Battalion was on the ridiculous side of things.

"Have your men pull back and regroup on me, I'll take over the chain of command."

"Da."

"—Komandir! Someone… something just activated Prafka! It's… Trista, sir! But it's different, very different from Cryska and Inia!" That, Sandek had no idea was happening.

Newly appeared hope for Sandek's little calculation. 2nd Lt. Sestina couldn't fulfill what Sandek sought after, perhaps the returned property was more capable than she was. Before him there was a gamble, a bet the Russian was willing to take.

"Idar 2 and 3, return to base at once, interact with her and attempt to interfere with their Prafka. I will manage this unit here, however be ready to provide support."

"Yest, ser!" Immediately, the esper controlled Su-47s darted back to their home. Sandek waited until they were out of his view before boosting to the skies and joining the action.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:42 AM**

"C'mon, c'mon, c'mon! There yooou-go!" They were just everywhere, why did these assholes not show up when we sortied for the hives again?

Information leak was almost impossible to purge on a scale the size of our invasion. Thinking about it now, stopping their reinforcement from arriving sounded so much easier out of sensei's mouth.

My YF-23 spun splendidly through the air with glorious evasive maneuvers to dodge the immeasurable incoming shots, metal of all types was the only view available for my eyes. However, constant tension had kept up with me nonstop and was wearing me down considerably.

"Hnnnnm! Ahha-haaa… soo tired, gotta shoot up…" After yawning loudly, I clicked a couple buttons on my suit to inject some stimulants into my bloodstream. All they did was keeping me awake anyway, no point in letting others know.

By the time my mind sharpened on the dozen of surface fighters around, something had changed about them. They were conscious now, no longer blindly rushing in to their early death, instead this team of Su-27s started to hit me with strategies. Actual, viable military strategies.

They backed away into a defensive position, forming a half-circle with me in the centre. Another shower of depleted uranium had me backing away from the tactical kill zone it created, the sudden rise in precision and coordination of this team compared to their acts minutes ago had a day and night difference.

"—you guys' delivery of brains just arrived or something!? Why use tactics now!? Just let me slice you up!" Being the asshole I was, I openly taunted my attackers over the public channel. Maybe acting like an absolute prick could throw them off their games, never know.

"YOU THERE! Motherfucker in the black Berkut! Jerzy Sandek, right!? Sit tight and we'll have a talk once these dipshits are dealt with! Don't be in a hurry, GOT ME!?" If I had to pinpoint one reason why the Russian Battalion suddenly got so skillful. My money was on their new leader, Sandek's guidance, especially after his Su-47 was detected by my radar.

"I HAVE BUSNIESS TO DISCUSS WITH YOU! HAVE MY CARD!" He responded nothing back as assumed, the man had his repetition to keep up, I guess. Still, it wouldn't matter anyway as long as I can get rid of the rest.

It was often said hunters could be categorized into two types. The ones who stealthily sneak up on their prey and make a clean, painless kill on their first try; or those who intentionally toy around, letting themselves be known and turn the entire hunt to a fun game.

Speaking personally, what is a hunt if there isn't a chance at missing? Enjoyment always comes from beating the other party in a fair fight, going for one-hit-K.O is just lame.

"Ah, fuck me. I'm outta time." With that said, there is also a proper period for everything. And dicking around all day wouldn't look good on my resume.

Back on track, finally out of patience with frolicking around these assholes, I discarded both of my near empty rifles down to the ground. The Mount Pylon which carried my trusty pair of swords jerked upright and awaited my dragging of their steel.

With a sword in each hand, there stood nothing capable of stopping me any longer. I was determined to bring an end to this entire nonsense and return home for my afternoon tea. So as a sign of the engagement's gravity, there was one last thing left to do before going ham on some Russians.

To ensure maximum efficiency and minimum loss of time, I had to adapt a fighting skill I sometime rather forget. Throwing both swords high up in the air, my Phase 3 boosted after it as the Soviets chased me down with bullets per usual.

"Urrga, shit this's unpleasant as hell though." Again, my remark was for myself alone.

I caught the halberds, two of them in total with my machine's palms. Other than holding them in reverse which would be unnatural and irrational under normal circumstances, there was nothing wrong with my stance. However, literally backstabbing dudes with icepick grip was probably the only skills I picked up when observing the end of the world.

"You want some fucking Japanese Spirit, huh, MOTHERFUCKERS!? Come get some!" Every goddamn time I destroy people with this posture, that smug looking prick's stupid ass face always pops into my head.

Nonetheless, seeing how angry I got from the memories of being kinda NTRed did fuel my piloting skills to even greater heights, allowing me to slice apart the Soviets like a lightsaber through many… whatever those furries in the trees were called.

 **Cui Yifei**

 **05:44 AM**

"—Infinity 1 to Bao-Feng 1, negative result from scanner."

"—Infinity 3, same story." Sighing to herself, Yifei wanted to blame the Americans for their terrible detection ability.

"—Bao-Feng 1, roger. We're not seeing anything either. You guys can continue patrolling Area G-10, keep the 94 busy if you see it." Still, she could only do that if her team had actual progress to show for.

"Roger."

Almost a minute now, the Targets they were skirmishing against suddenly retreated without a trace. At first Yifei believed they just ran away in fear of combat, however in that case they should be seeing movements instead of absolute silence.

"—all units, search pattern Echo. Watch your backs."

"—understood!" The rest of her Flight answered in unison.

Their previous tactic worked wonders on the Element of TSFs, The Shiranui was a long-range type and the Su-47 was a melee centric fighter. Surely a deadly combo when put together, However Yifei's side also had players for that role.

The Raptors were able to constantly outrange the 94 with their advanced targeting system and better mobility, while Bao-Feng's J-10Xs had the integer supremacy over the Berkut flying solo. Honestly, what was Yuuya thinking putting only a pair of surface fighters on the duty of stopping her? He'll at least need an army.

"—Bao-Feng 3 to Bao-Feng 1. I'm picking up TSF readin— Arrga! Wha-the—!"

"Huh? Huh? Bao-Feng 3, report your status! Bao-Feng 3!"

"Hooh! That was pretty close! The Berkut, Ane-san! It reappeared by me!" Just a bit north of where Yifei was, Wang updated her on the presence of the Berkut.

"Copy that! All units! Rendezvous by Bao-Feng 3 and let's get rid of them Ruskie twins!"

"Roger!" With herself in the lead, Yifei flipped on her boosters to the max and charged ahead for her husband's courtesans.

"Wai— did you guys see that? My optics just acted up."

"Yeah, same."

"Uh-huh, a flash of statics, it was." All three of her teammates criticized about something Yifei missed.

"What're you talking about?"

"You didn't see it, Ane-san? My screen got disoriented a lot for a sec." Yifei had her eyes elsewhere when the event happened and was not looking closely.

"Whatever, probably ECM jammers. Focus on the fight ahead."

"Roger."

"Infinity 1 to Bao-Feng, we have spotted the Shiranui. It is also heading for your marker." Just on time too, the American joined back in their channel when he got something to report.

"Ane-san, something's weird about this one. It's… just standing there, nothing shooting at all." Half way to her location, Lee added a bit to her debrief.

"Can confirm, the 94 is also holding fire." Similarly, Infinities also found their target to be passive.

"Are they trying to reset the engagement? So they're finally taking us seriously then, huh!? All units, box them in and prepare for combat! Be careful to whatnot new countermeasure they thought up!" It wasn't confidence Yifei fuelled herself with, she truly believed in her team and to a certain extent, and the Americans.

"Roger!"

—

Exactly five hundred metres forward, there hovered two TSFs devised by different nations of the globe. Opposite of them was six more surface fighters constructed by another two unique countries. The entire bunch stared intensely at the other party through their optics, smallest movement would result in an all-out firefight instantly.

"—Bao-Feng Flight… we gotta respect the enemy. Draw sword!" Almost any movement.

What the Su-47 did was one simple act; it dropped the pair of Type-87 Assault Cannons it had been using until now. As the rifles fell out of favour from their owner and were replaced by another ejection of two Motor Blades, Yifei realized the intention of the crimson machine's pilot.

More importantly, Yifei also wished to personally beat the crap out of those two Soviets who stole Yuuya from right under Takamura, who stole him from her where he should have belonged.

"—aha, Ane-san is being personally confronted~ I see! Maybe we shouldn't bother her duel?" The tease of her team; Lee, made a joke at Yifei's expense.

"Don't even think about ditching, 04! I'm not here to fight for honour! I'm here to punish the thieves!" That was a perfect justification for Yifei's actions so far.

"Ara… then it's my ba—"

"Hostile's moving, Captain. Something's… off about it." Until the Infinities Lieutenant reminded her, Yifei nearly forgot she was in a serious combat situation.

Staring back at the Berkut and Shiranui again, something did appear strange about how the two frames were starting to behave. Within the spam of maybe twenty seconds, the duo of invaders would twitch their bits and pieces of TSFs. The tail fins, shoulder vanes, Jump Jet stabilizers and some other awkward gestures were performed by the Berkut and Shiranui alike.

The Su-47 brought up both of its arms and acted confused by what it saw in its hands. No, that wasn't it, Yifei discerned; the Soviet unit was studying its chainsaws. Using the eyes of its head compartment, it inspected the blades equivalent to how a real person would examine their weapon. It was indeed unsettling to the extreme.

Same thing happened with the Type-94, the rifles it had in its grip were flipped up and around its fingers; the way it spun both rifles was eye-catching, Yifei admitted. Passing from one finger to another, thrown lightly into the air and caught with the other hand; almost like a conjuror, how it handled its guns.

"Infinity 1 to Bao-Feng 1, I recommend we engage now, before those pilots attack first." A realistic suggestion knocked Yifei out of her daze.

"Yeah, yeah that's good. You two will keep the turret at bay and we can deal with the brawler. We'll try to give you the Russians alive, but don't cry too much if things go ugly."

"…Understood." Wordlessly, all the defenders agreed to striking first and asking questions later.

"Go one three… one… two—"

With her gun at the ready and CIWS right behind it, Yifei had to blink her eyes as dictated by the limits of any human. So she did, one blink; it was shorter than a second later, her entire worldview changed.

"Hold on, hold on! Picking up incoming Soviet Su-47s—!"

"WATCH IT! IT'S MO—"

"—AAH—!"

"Evade! HURRY!"

"MOVE! MO—!"

Chaos, in the blink of an eye. Everything crashed and burned so quickly, Yifei missed all of the details when her senses caught up to her surroundings.

Amongst them, the Su-47 stood. Twin Motor Blades stuck into the heads of two TSFs as the continuous sawing noise echoed repeatedly in Yifei's ears. She felt the turn to her left took longer than a year, so slow in comparison to the hostile TSF. Her two teammates, Bao-Feng 3 and 4 were killed on the spot. The chainsaws cleaved down, through the cockpits and left the frames in two halves.

"What… was that…? Linmei? Yuhua?" If a uniformed person was to answer her question, it was simply be the Su-47 Berkut. Yet, in Yifei's mind, this monster arrived without invitation all too fast. The destroyed corpses of her team members scrapped slowly off to the earth, leaving the girl more traumatized than ever.

Dead; both of them. Two Chinese crafts cleaved clean apart by the emotionless chainsaws, right down the middle of the cockpit.

"AAAHHGA! YOU BITCH! YOU BITCH! HOW COULD YOU!"

Inconceivable, no matter how she hated the Scarlet Twins for taking him away, she still believed in her humanity that murdering the pair of Russians never once crossed her mind. Sure, they weren't the best of friends by a long stretch; but Yifei never wanted to see someone she fought alongside with dead.

Striking fast and hard, her first instinct after coming out of shock was to return attack. However, it went nowhere; Yifei couldn't avenge her team this easily. The fatal razor made no connection to the Berkut's armour, it had already leaped away in the time it took her to focus the rage and strike back. Utilizing a full reverse boost, that murdering TSF backed away to the side of its companion.

"FUUUCCK! Bao-Feng 2! Switch to CQC coverage support! Infinites! Keep that 94 at bay! It gets in my way when I tear that whore apart; you ain't getting off easy, assholes!" Until now, Yifei was determined to end their meaningless lives. Rational and furious altogether; she couldn't forgive the twins, then again, she also couldn't forget her training.

"R-ro-roger!" Wang was bewildered by all the events going on at once, she only answered stumblingly.

"Infinity 3! Open fire, open fire! —unidentified white Su-47s! State your unit and purpose immediately!" That was also something she missed, the white painted Berkuts which entered their arena that moment, were they friend or foe?

"—Soviet Idar Flight to PLA and US Army, we are tasked with terminating the hostile units. Who is the highest in command currently?" It didn't matter in the slightest what more of those Ruskies wanted, if they were providing assistance, then surely there were chores to be done.

"—that's me! Capt. Cui of the PLA Bao-Feng Test Flight! If you're here to help, connect your data-link with us!"

"It is completed, Capt. Cui. Awaiting orders." Emotionless, it wasn't abnormal for creatures of the same species to behave like one another, but hearing them all sounding the same already left a bad taste in Yifei's mouth.

"FUCK it all! I don't trust any of you pod people more than the next! Provide long-range bombardment with the Americans; leave your traitor to me! I swear I'm going to slice her to pieces!"

"Captain, that's not who you think…" One of the two Russians started a sentence she didn't finish.

"What was that!?"

"Do not mind me, Capt. Cui. We'll follow your plan accordingly." While the Soviets obviously wanted to say something, the Chinese girl had better things to consider than her undelivered idea.

"UUWGGA! These fucking little shits! Thinking they're so high and mighty! WHY!? You didn't have to KILL THEM!" Death closely followed the shadow of any soldiers. Yifei was no stranger to the loss of friends. But this wasn't how it supposed to be, being killed here, by the hands of betrayers hurt so much more than dying honourably in battle.

So she surged forward, seeking vengeance under the context of protecting Yukon from invaders. The fight had begun; dangerous beyond measure was their scuffle. Yifei was determined to kill off those Twins. Because as of that moment, the battle just switched from a duel of skill to a savage fray of life and death.

"It didn't have to be this way! You both were already gone! WHY COULDN'T YOU STAY AWAY?!" Storming forward, Yifei could only get even for the dead. Scarlet Twins decided to start this bloodshed; she must end it here and now.

There stood Yifei's new nemesis coloured in a red paintjob, its purple LED tubes embedded to certain parts of its armour radiated beams of marvellous light. Never before had Yifei been able to feel the killing intent of another so clearly. Just like herself, it wished for the Captain's blood so much that air surrounding this Berkut was mangled to something completely inhuman.

In fact, the thirst for blood of that Su-47's pilot was so strong; it leaked out and became visible to the naked eye.

Rays of manifested clouds formed around the Berkut, four distinct bursts of substance shot out behind it. Like the ageless cape of a gram reaper, the cloud of energy was also black to the brim. Analogous to wings, the uncontainable smoke wavered and flapped to bring about death for every inch of ground it covered.

"What…!? You're using a smokescreen here!? How much do you want to mock me!?" Deep down, she didn't truly believe it to be artificial gas contained by a canister. The sensation just wasn't there for that to hold true.

If the monster in front of her wasn't intending on striking first, she sure was hell wouldn't hold back. Her plan was to fire off a quick burst from her rifles and dart around the TSF; after all, she'll just improvise until they're both dead.

Yifei's eyes were set on her hated target ahead only.

Before Yifei was in range, however, the Berkut acted first. Instead of an offensive push or defensive stance, all it did was lifting both arms to its head and shrieked. A mouth less mechanical TSF shrieked out, but it wasn't anything like the voices of humans. The sound counted as a soul-wrenching howl of vicious pleasure, Yifei could feel the joy its pilot relished from its bloodthirsty desire.

Then an explosion of the already abundant energy blasted out, originating a wave of coloured cloud in all directions. The Su-47 leaped up, dreadfully fast with its Motor blades outrageously sharp. Yifei jerked her sticks in to the side, any fear she underwent was overshadowed by a stronger anger.

The Berkut became invincible; its ambience covered out the moon. So Yifei wished to kill tonight's eclipse, as revenge to their long-lasting rivalry.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Author's note**

Someone called me out for the Yukon arc dragging on, you sir, are absolutely correct. Hey, I'm no J. R. R. Tolkien, you can't expect my story to be good in the first place, and The Lord of the Rings is fucking long too.

Anyway, I'm not a good writer so the current arc is giving me problems. It is finished though, so just bare through a few more chapters, sorry people and thanks for reading as always.

BETA done by chad001. Once a guy in a wheelchair stole my invisibility cloak, I let him get away for now, because he can hide; but he can't run.


	34. Turn around, every now and then IV

**Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **Soviet Б-01, outskirt**

 **05:45 AM**

"—Blyat! Focus fire on target! He's so fucking fast!"

"—get clear of the blast! Guided shells are not hitting anywhere close!"

"—this is fucking ridiculous! Mudak! That unit's just charging us!"

Unexpected development of events should be considered as norm, seeing as this team of only nine TSFs had breached one of the world's most high-tech army bases. Yet Sandek truly didn't suppose for things to work out like this.

It didn't work; Sandek constructed a good countermeasure to the hostile's elite machine under the assumption it would take logical actions during combat, it didn't do that at all.

Instead, what he had to face was a crazy suicidal Third-Gen holding its CIWS in reverse and recklessly running straight for his men head-on. A Japanese banzai charge was the foremost similarity he drew, but unlike WWII, it proved to be much more successful.

"—Kapitan! We're losing men like crazy! That guy is completely slaughtering us out here!"

"—all units, turn back and retreat beyond point D-5. That enemy's goal is me, I will bait it away. Your team can attack it from behind if it chooses to give chase."

"What're you—! Kapitan! That's crazy! You're basically telling us to retreat!"

"Do not mistake an escape with a tactical withdraw. This terrain is unfavorable for us, that frame is capable of faster and quicker maneuvers in midair than your Battalion. Only my Berkut can keep up with its speed, I will draw it to somewhere more suited for concentrated fire."

Acceptable or not, Sandek had to admit that he was in quite a pinch. The 25th Battalion fighting by his side was the most basic grunts; they had regular TSFs paired with regular training, no match for the test flights stationed at Yukon Base; the same flights that were taking heavier casualties by the minute.

Besides, what the pilot of that Unknown said was beyond interesting. He addressed the Russian Captain by name in his second announcement. From what Sandek heard and analyzed, there was no doubt this Phase 3 look-alike's user was a Japanese man in origin, making him the second one to ever hold such a huge influence over his plans.

"But, sir! That's still—" Real-time discussions were prone to interruptions at any time, such as when the surface fighter in question already pushed up to deliver a blow on Sandek.

The Su-47 Berkut should have been the pinnacle of Soviet Tactical Surface Fighter development program. Surpassing the second best model, the Su-37 Terminator by a whopping thirty-seven percent, over one-third of the Terminator's potential.

"Such power… faster and stronger than the base Phase 3 model. This configuration… modded by Americans?" Blocking with its twin Motor Blades, Sandek saved himself just in time as the heavy PBs came crashing down.

The Unknown was a butterfly in a thunder storm, its every action gorgeously beautiful to the core. Not one wasted thrust or an overshot lunge of its swords, its competent pilot couple with spectacular machine could be any more deadly. If the Su-47 was able to defy the law of momentum conservation, then the Unknown unit owned it, physics belonged in the palm of its hands.

"—all units! Pull back at once! I will be withdrawing to the centre of the base, provide fire support if the hostile unit gives chase. Act immediately!" There was little time left for disinclination.

Backing his jump jets in full force, Sandek ejected a powerful storm of compressed air directly onto the new 94 Second as it boosted him in reverse. During situations like this, flying away in an unbent line was only safe due to the lack of firepower the Unknown possessed. Unhappy with his escape, the invader gave chase the instant Sandek turned his back.

"—Kapitan! Currently engaging hostile Type-94 and Su-47 pzX1… it's Martica's unit, sir!" Another new radio update arrived from the espers he sent away earlier.

"—can you detect its pilot?" When Sandek responded back, it had none of his prior uneasiness in the voice.

"—ne-negative, Kapitan…! It's not going well! We can only sense Trista but we can't control her! Whomever she's with, we can't activate the possessive hijack!"

"—it… shouldn't even be possible! Not like this! This shouldn't be happening!"

For once, Sandek did not anticipate that, not one bit. The two espers on his team spoke in perturbation, what they met wasn't with expectation. He didn't know how, he didn't know what happened. This circumstance was spiralling out of his control fast and into the hands of another.

"Idar 2, Idar 3. Explain your situation clearly."

"It's not the right effect, sir! Their Prafka is not collaborative with ours!"

"But we don't know who it is! Her… coding is not like us! She's on another level… she's just isn't normal! It's not in sync with ours!" Clueless, Sandek disliked intensely the feeling of losing control.

"I understand, is the engagement ongoing?"

"Da! They just killed two of PLA's Bao-Feng Flight! An element from America's Infinities is also present!"

"Okay, keep your distance from Trista and the unknown esper. Avoid direct contact and only have the others fight on the front. I'm on my way over immediately. Continue attempting to gain control." It would be very troubling if the Yukon Base incident were to repeat here.

"Vas ponyal!"

Now Sandek wasn't retreating from combat, he was racing to reach a new one. The Phase 3 hot in pursuit was luckily thwarted by another wave of Soviet reinforcement, giving him precious time to make his escape. Whoever the new esper was or how she came into being, Sandek was intrigued by the idea of a creature beyond what Trista was capable of, seeing as she was their best.

"2nd Lt. Bridges… did he bring along more interesting subjects as the catalyst? Or perhaps they're with another collection…" Sandek sought after knowledge; it was knowledge that will grant him control.

 **Takamura Yui**

 **05:47 AM**

"—1st Lt. Takamura Yui, White-Fang 1; data-link online, initiated seat information transfer, secured control block. CP, deactivate Gantry lock."

Yui's fight was now, she must face the decisions she never wanted to make. She still wished for it to be only a hoax, if there was just a method to avoid all this violence and death ahead of her path. It wasn't how things were supposed to be, she shouldn't be fighting against any of them.

"—CP confirmed, cockpit block secured, Gantry lock disengaged." Two massive clamps keeping the shoulders of Yui's Takemikazuchi in place were freed, allowing her unrestricted movement within the Honour Guard hangar.

"White-Fang 1, equipping inventory." Taking no unnecessary steps, Yui grabbed her standard gear off the weaponry stall. Using a Strike Vanguard loadout, she stocked two swords on her Mount Pylon and two guns in her hands respectively.

"Inventory checked, open hangar gates."

"CP confirmed, hangar gates opening. You'll be faci— hostiles immediately after departure, be —reful, 1st Lt. Takamura. Godspeed." The connection was starting to become choppy as the source of the ECM was closing in.

"White-Fang 1 copy, launching." On that note, Yui marched out step by step to end the already prolonged war.

"…What… is this?" Although she didn't have to go and search for any fighting, warfare itself quite literally was thrown in Yui's face.

A narrowly intact F-15 was cruelly smashed against the hangar door next to Yui, its poor structure dismembered into a thousand pieces upon impact. Legs, arms, chest block and jump engines all mauled beyond repair, only the cockpit was spared of this brutish treatment.

"Why… would…?" Yui snapped herself out of the trace to regain emphasis on her situation. Scouting the scenery around her, the IRJ officer only arrived at a single word; death.

The world was burning; an endless field of mechanical corpses littered the ground. A sea of red dominated all other colours of the spectrum; there was no limit to this fire, it consumed everything in sight, every life smoldered by a lone devil painted in royal purple.

Yui saw her directly, her majestic Type-74 PB Blade held dignifiedly in the machine's right hand as she pinched the head of a surviving Falcon using her left. Then she crushed its sensory block completely, the decapitated carcass of the F-16 fell lifelessly to the ground. This entire scene was all too similar to what Yui witnessed a while back.

"—Takamura… I have been awaiting your arrival." It shouldn't be her voice, anything else but another betrayal. Logically, a transmission designated to another unknown unit without utilizing the open channel cannot reach the receiver of its goal.

"—Mitsurugi…sama…! WHY?! Please explain your reasoning! For you of all people to attack Yukon! There's— there must be a misunderstanding regarding this! Please tell me so I can solve it!" One omission for this rule could be applied to the IRG's Type-00s, as a secure line was always available between frames of the Royal Household.

In slow motion, Yui met the eyes of the Takemikazuchi. A freezing, emotionless glare entered her instantly. Alongside being addressed individually by name, Yui couldn't deny knowing the identity of her attacker, no matter how desperately she hoped for everything to be mistaken.

"There is nothing to understand, Takamura. I stand here, before you as your only antagonist. Temporize not; strive to strike me down for the sake of your peaceful home." How was this acceptable? Mitsurugi demanded her of the one task forever forbidden for an Honour Guard to carry out.

"I cannot do that, Mitsurugi-sama! You should know that better than anyone!"

"You are misguided, Takamura. Do not see me as a member of the imperial family, as far as you shall be concerned, I am a mere terrorist threatening the safety of everything you have left." And this, this was more unacceptable. Mitsurugi said it herself clearly; other than what Yui had in Yukon, there was nothing else for her.

"…Must this all end in bloodshed, Mitsurugi-sama!?"

"Yes, you have no choice. If you are incompatible with this future, you'll have no escape." Heartless words froze Yui's sentiments for good. Acting as the model Honour Guard that she was, this was her only mission which must be accomplished. XFJ's success was her goal, duty came in priorities.

"If no other outcomes are convenient, so be it."

Without breaking their burning bond of the eyes, Mitsurugi extended the left arm of her unit back right above the shoulder, its palm open and ready to receive. Similarly, the Takemikazuchi-00F flung aside the Assault Cannon it never used and assumed the same exact stance with its right hand outstretched.

It had never been more comprehensible than this; either party realized what they must undertake no matter the cost. So at the same time, the Mount Pylons on supporting both of their PB-Blade leaped up at once. The sharp fingers tightly seized the handle of two swords separately, and a final expel by the Mount Pylons pushed the weapons into the hands of both fighters.

It was about to start, a dance between warriors like no other. By the time Yui was prepared to intercept Mitsurugi's strike, she waited not one second to charge forward.

"I must defeat you here, Takamura. Our destiny depends on this victory."

"I, too must achieve this win to maintain order of our lives."

And then there existed nothing left to be said, the soldiers preordained to carry out their fate charged forward, unafraid of their unseen future.

"TAKAMURA!"

"MITSURUGI!"

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **05:49 AM**

Kasumi lived, alone in a world of void. There was no floor for her feet, yet she stood balanced. There was no air to breath, yet she didn't feel the oxygen was lacking. It was indeed a strange incident, Kasumi had no physical form, the part of her remaining was only the thoughts.

Her body moved by her will, but it wasn't as if the body belonged to her. This perception, it reminded Kasumi or her old days. Times spent sleeping in pods after pods for experiment's sake; she didn't enjoy those days, not to mention how much fun her daily life was now.

Like controlling a game character, Kasumi was the puppeteer over her own body. Yet she wasn't the sole ruler of herself, there existed the true game master. Someone much, much stronger in contrast had higher sovereignty to her physical form than the Russian girl.

Sumika was there, Sumika was with her.

Their pupils expanded wide outward equally, and so did their iris augmented to shield the white sclera. From the core of their enlarging eyeballs, a new light radiated brilliantly. A colour that could be recounted as black and white, the blended shade sparkled luminescence of pure strength.

Kasumi could witness herself behaving in ways unfitting her usual nature, doing things such as speaking with emotions and having expressions. But it was still her, the flip-side of the coin was just another Kasumi she often forget existed.

Besides, it felt good; the pleasure Kasumi enjoyed was challenging to put into words. It was unlike copulating with Takeru, which was much more… stimulating than what Kasumi currently experienced through Sumika's occupation of her physique. The gratification came constantly, almost never-ending as both girls showered themselves in ecstasy.

Anyway, seeing through the hazy eyes of her mind, Kasumi observed the battlefield to the best of her abilities. Akin to Sumika's TSF, her Type-94 was lit ablaze by a seemingly endless cloud of blackness. Kasumi's real world self was enjoying the massacre of her foes, missing shots purposefully to lengthen the amusement of cornering their preys.

Kasumi wasn't too sure about what her unit was doing now, Sumika probably had it covering for her Berkut as she tore apart TSFs from limb to limb. Publicly, relishing death was morbid by the view of society, but to the pair of rabbit girls who accompanied their saviour through thick and thin, the girls cared little for rules created by a relic of a world.

 **KAGamI suMikA**

 **0:0:0:0**

Life was truly a bliss to allow such pleasure. And to think this hour of euphoria was associated with only the two of them, the pure delight from that thought alone was tipping Sumika over the edge.

Now only if the death of others were allowed, nothing would stop Sumika anymore. For now, she limited her urges to contain herself. She mustn't kill, she must not kill people.

"CoNfroNt uS! rEleaSE thAt BEAutIfuL fUrY!…" In the cockpit of the Su-47, Sumika leaned forward, filled herself with zeal and screamed thrillingly to the quarries under her fingers. The strikes by the Jian-10 were hysterically weak, just like the Eishi who flew it.

"-WE ShalL HunT YoU DowN. PiecE BY PiecE, MaN TO MaN." The shell which used to contain a full person known as Kasumi finished Sumika's sentence.

As an Element, the pair of esper girls owned the sky. Neither the American Raptors nor what remained of the Chinese Jian-10s could pull the immovable rug from under their feet, plus the newcomer espers weren't even worth a mention. This battlefield was their haven; the outcome of Takeru's dream will be their obligation to fulfill.

"sHoW US! thE IdLe lifE You sO FoUGHT to PrOteCt!…" Like the devil, she spilt her mouth to a terrific grin. The 00 unit grinded her teeth bitterly and thrillingly at every passing moment, she was enjoying the carnage to fulfill all her fantasies.

"-LeT US SeE. HoW WorthlesS ThaT ColouR OF YourS MusT BE." Her expression was not gentle; not kind by any standard. Under the influence of her friend, Kasumi loved the heightened sensation of flutter running in her veins.

The F-22s were slower than a snail clawing upstream, they could never hope to escape the border of Kasumi's scope. Dashing left, right and all around, her Shiranui perfected the essence of evasive maneuvers.

As for the white Su-47s, they just happened to be there, that was the only purpose they served. Sumika couldn't distinguish who fired which rounds; it all looked the same when nothing came closer to hitting her. Thinking too much here was only a bother.

The Eishi of the Jian-10X, however, was much more satisfying as a toy in comparison. Her emotions fluctuated wildly, from the confidence thinking her team had the upper hand to eventually stampeding in her sightless anger. And more hilariously was that the lone girl held such high pride, every second she faced them with her senses shut burned angst deep in her arrogant heart.

"WHy Do thE WeAKINGs fIgHt!? FutILiTy! dO You nOt undERStand!?…"

"-TO Not ProtecT YouR DreaM IS ThE FaulT OF OneselF, We ShalL SlaY YoU HerE TO ShoW ThE FailurE YoU MusT EndurE."

To the Bao-Feng leader's credit, she was a hundred twenty percent steadfast on killing Sumika in the worst ways possible, that itself was quite a pretty colour to be projected. Nonetheless, the vectors of her attacks were all wrong; a swing, no matter how powerful was pointless if all Sumika had to do was sidestep to avoid.

"C'MoN, c'mOn, Try haRdEr yOu GoOd-For-noTHiNg fILth!…"

"-OuR PlaytimE StilL ContinueS TO ThE EnD OF TimE."

Casually, just like a cat toying with a captured mouse, Sumika flew backwards bit by bit as the Jian-10X missed every single one of its openings to deliver the blows. It was just so much fun to watch, the struggle to win a pointless battle.

Cut by cut, Sumika was careful to only bruise the opposing TSF so it wouldn't be too discouraged and back away. Her Motor Blades missed the vitals by margins so small, measuring tape wouldn't be used to calculate her accuracy; a microscope would be preferred.

The other PLA's TSF was asking to be dealt with, its Eishi acting like too much of a killjoy who tried to stop her leader's attempted rampage. If Sumika wanted more fun with her limited time fighting, that nuisance needed to be removed.

"yoU! We shAll STARt fRoM YOU!…"

"-YoU CannoT RuN, YoU CannoT HidE."

Yanking her joysticks back, Sumika sent her Berkut in a backflip chained to a tailspin and back up with a Rocket Boost. A beautiful three part maneuver executed to perfection. Her Berkut was heading straight for the second J-10 shadowing its leader, the Motor Blades were triggered once more as Sumika smelled the blood in the air.

Concomitantly, Kasumi threw her Shiranui away from the Raptors and the white Su-47s. To stop their pursuit, she bent her main arms backward to continue the bombardment of shells upon her chasers. Her heading suddenly lined up with Sumika's, without the use of radio or data-link communication, the Element of Eishis had a much better method.

"HoPeLEss! wHy WoN'T YOu juST laY Down and DIE!…"

"-OuR TimE IS ValuablE, DO NoT WastE IT AT YouR LeisurE."

Closer and closer now, the Chinese leader's TSF rotated itself around in chase of Sumika while she was darting at the other PLA frame. From behind, Kasumi also rushed ahead with her afterburners on. Acting on instinct, the Jian-10X crammed by the invading Element flipped on its boosters to escape such terrible position, it would have almost made it too.

If not for the explosion originating from the Berkut and Shiranui, that is.

"Hihihihahaha! tRy It! JUSt TrY US!…"

"-NowherE TO RuN, ThE ToY StruggleS BetweeN OuR FingerS." An insane laughter, unfitting for either of the esper girls was echoing within their cockpits. A malicious countenance of pure pleasure replaced any of their previous manners.

It wasn't an explosion in the literal sense, but for anyone observing the onslaught of a battle, it couldn't be called anything else.

The already thick cloud of black smoke constantly encasing the Element's TSFs ruptured in every single bearing, bursting out and erasing the earth. Much, much stronger than before, the smoke seemed like an unstoppable surge of all-consuming destruction, brining extinction to anything touched by this dark smoulder.

Still, the darkness continued. Unending shadow engulfed the land, stopping at nothing as it spread further and further, it couldn't be contained until the entire Yukon Base was eaten by their mist of energy.

"— **HihihihI-AhEhEhEhEhE-AHAHAHAAHA!** " At the high of their extreme ecstasy, both girls let their elation be known by a bloodcurdling laughter.

"… **TAKERU-CHAN! WE OFFER YOU. THE ENTIRETY…! OF YUKON!** " It could be said that; on this day, a never-seen before progress in esper research was made.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:53 AM**

"Goddamn it, pussy! Is running away the only thing you're good for?!" Pent up anger without a proper outlet was one of the most painful experiences in my book. So regrettably for the dozen of Su-27s surrounding me, it wasn't going to be an easy night for any of them.

But the amount of scrapped metal didn't mean shit if I couldn't catch up to that 47E, he just hightailed it right out the moment another bunch of dudes got in my way. Seeing we were already so short on time, if I couldn't clear this area for Sumika to unload, Barchenowa was kinda gonna stay dead.

Also, coincidence or not, my fleeing target was going in the exactly same direction as where I came from dozen minutes ago. That unit most likely was the commander of those white Berkuts which Bridges saw eariler, making its pilot someone I will have to talk with.

"—Arc 2, 3, we have a Su-47E heading for your AO. Do you have eyes on?" So naturally, I radioed the Prafka team to get a firm update.

"—AhHAA! aHhhaAAa! It'S TaKeRU-chAN! taKERu-ChAn TAKEru-ChaN TAKERU-CHAN!…"

"— -MY LorD, WE HavE YeT TO SpoT AnY IntruderS. CurrenT SkirmisH IS GoinG WelL."

Well… that was weird, the way Sumika and Kasumi replied to me. That was… super weird. Nevermind the strange term Kasumi addressed me by, they sounded so fragmented, kinda like a terribly made mixing tape.

"Errrm… I'm coming over right now so… keep up the good work, eliminate all tangos quickly and if you see a black Su-47, go for capture." I so very much wanted to ask them about their speech difference, but something told me now wasn't the best time.

"AHHAaa! takERU-cHan iS comINg to SEe US!…"

"-UnderstooD, MY LorD."

"Okaaay theeen… okay… Arc 1 out." I could literally say nothing to them right now.

My best guess was Prafka, or whatever induced Prafka that turned their language pattern to something this strange. Again, I have never personally seen the effects of Prafka on an Eishi with these eyes, the best I got was a video clip of a Terminator emitting funny lights while tearing through BETA, and that was from Yuuko-sensei.

Although I wasn't sure if that massive, black cloud surging towards me was also related to that.

"Alllriiight…! What the fuck IS THIS!?"

On my way over to my bunny girls, a giant pit of raven-coloured fog engulfed my machine whole. I was submerged in this smoke, visibility reduced to a minimum as even thermal was obstructed because for some stupid-ass reason, the cloud of darkness had the temperature of a normal human.

Still, I wouldn't call this mist dangerous. As it completely inundated my YF-23 and robbed me of my vision, it wasn't emitting any sensation of aggression. Instead, an invisible path constructed from a separation in the clouds paved the road ahead, as if inviting me to push onwards.

"Well… if you insist." Of course, any invitation is a good invitation.

 **Jerzy Sandek**

 **05:54 AM**

It was everywhere; the endless haze blinded Sandek's sensors. He couldn't see more than five metres ahead, behind, or in any direction for that matter. Standard pilot training did cover for when heavy metal cloud impedes with the visual quality, however it was unlike anything to this extreme.

"—Idar 2, 3, come in. Status report." Despite all that drawbacks, Sandek was still a brilliant man with tricks up his sleeves. As long as the espers were safe, he could put them to good use.

"—K-Kapitannn… our apology… they… they reverse hijacked us! –HAA—haa!"

"— **uur-wggaaa! Too much…! The Nastroyka Effect! It's eating into us—!** "

As for that, Sandek's plan just went completely out the window. The failure was much, much faster and earlier than he would have foreseen. Albeit he wasn't all that surprised by it. The moment he was told another esper stronger in abilities than Trista was present, he already expected things to not work as intended.

"What is your situation?" Sandek asked just to confirm.

" **Protect…? Who? Endless strength, unbeatable might… for what? To protect who? A name… why do you call for him? Guard him, shield him, watch him…?** " Unresponsive were the dolls, they failed to register what Sandek had said and replaced their answer with more clues leading to their state.

"Yuuya Bridges… is that man capable of administering the espers to this degree? Is the twins a conductor or—"

" **Take-run… Takuren… Takeru? Shirogane… Takeru…? Is that… your saviour…? The reflection… of your mirror?** " Then they both muttered in unison a wrong name. It was not Yuuya Bridges who ran the white-haired pilots, it was another man. Could it be a man even more fitting as a catalyst?

"Shirogane Takeru…? Is he the Japanese?" Sandek's question was more meant for himself instead of the Idar Element, since he knew the chance of their compromise was too high. So he didn't think anyone would be there to answer him, as in there shouldn't be anyone answering him in the first place.

A slight buzz over his radio broke the Russian's concentration. Something was up with his data-link, perhaps it was a side-effect of being absorbed by the cloudy substance. Sandek clicked around his transmission settings looking for any disturbances, and found one.

"—oUR mAStER, dO YOu unDERSTanD wHAT He DeSirES?…"

"— -Gospodin (Mister) Jerzy Sandek, dobro požalovat' (Welcome), to our stage of performance. It has BeeN a long time, there're matters we MusT discuss."

Words formed dialogue, sentences directed at none other than the Captain himself. Addressed by name, Sandek couldn't dismiss the astonishment he felt from hearing a voice long lost to another world.

"—Gospoja (Miss)… Trista Sestina… how long has it been now? Since your departure." Drying his cold sweat, Sandek did well in keeping his cool under such circumstances.

"-Physical AgE, that was six years ago. We HoweveR existed too long to remember our maturity." And that made no sense whatsoever for Sandek.

"…Is that so? Then what is your purpose here?" Naturally, he decided to withhold his question on a pointless topic, espers under the influence of Prafka could rarely think or speak properly. Even if Trista was an omission from that law, she still was fraught by the ability.

"-CryskA, she still lives. Her revival, that is OuR goal." Her reveal came unannounced as a less-than awe-worthy news for Sandek.

"Hupm… so the medicine Martica stole was effective enough to last her until now… how much time does she have left?" Trista's faint gasp was an indication on the amount of knowledge she had access to, this could be a card for Sandek to use against her at a later time.

"-YoU KneW?! …We admit out surprise, Sandek. Unforeseen, as it came." A short snort was Sandek's reply, he was proven wrong when he thought that Trista had no sense of humour.

"How long does she have?"

"-If we do not receive your cooperation, then not enough." Cogently, Sandek was perhaps the only one capable of delivering the assistance she sought.

"What can I do to help?" This wasn't an offer, it was merely a probe.

"Instructions and preparations, must be done; it must be DonE to bring her back, Cryska."

To Sandek, this was nothing short of a golden opportunity. Inia Sestina rejected the idea; unknowingly or willingly, it didn't matter. But here, right here in the centre of this gas was someone who never even registered as a potential valid participant. The girl who was sold off had returned, bringing along the most beneficial reward.

"I have demands as well, this is a compromise for both of us. Agree to me, then I will help you with reviving Barchenowa." Nothing was said back for a short time.

"…-WE shall at least HeaR your request."

"I want you to come with me. If this is truly the status of your Prafka, then you can achieve the П3 Plan for me."

"-To bring back the TotaL EclipsE of our world; with time, we deem it possible. However you shall not own us, ToolS of another master we ArE." Sandek received a half agreement; it was concerning how Trista Sestina now pledged loyalty to someone else.

"Who is it that you serve now? Who is this Shirogane Takeru?"

"wHY wOULd yoU WANt thAT knOWleDGe tO ReaCh YoU, COmrADe SaNdEK!?…" The same voice that started this conversation refused the Russian. She sounded different, at an even higher apex in terms of Prafka than Trista. So in turn, her words were almost completely nonsense.

"-He is the saviour of our worlds, speak with him on the terms to our covenant. Everything and AnythinG cannot be without his authority; with permission, we shall black out the MooN."

"Are you this confident in yourselves?" Sandek couldn't help but ask, dream and reality had too much of a gap in-between.

"-WatcH US, endless sight within our mirror. Tonight marks the beginning of our darkness." Then, just for Sandek alone, the smoke cleared. A path forward was curved out.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:56 AM**

"—god damn-it, it's like I'm applying for a job or something. I'm not here for an interview, alright!? Don't get started!" As I ranted on about all sorts of things, my newly-made Russian friend was silent to the end.

"So, anyway. The Fox of Yokohama said she'll be paying you a visit soon, to discuss many fun and enjoyable topics for the both of you; hopefully. As a reprehensive for Alternative IV, I just wanna say we do look forward to any potential collaboration with you."

"—is that so? For Dr. Kouzuki to personally arrive at Yukon for the esper program… I understand. This is very intriguing, Capt. Shirogane." I kinda wondered, why she bothered giving herself a nickname when everyone knew who she was?

"Well, that's my job done. Now if you would please setup your labs so we can bring back the esper, that'll be greatly appreciated."

"…Very well, once your men have this mess cleaned up, bring Barchenowa's body to the barracks. I am sending you the exact instructions right now. By the time you arrived, most of our equipment should be ready for use."

"Nice, thanks for your help. Capt. Sandek."

"We'll see, if Alternative IV holds what it takes to create an army." Then without leaving me a farewell gift, Sandek turned around and flew off in his Berkut, uncaring about any of the survivors from the Soviet Battalion I destroyed.

And that was it. I did also mention our willingness to assist the guy in his eclipse plan and he seemed happy for the most part about it. Really general stuff here, more politics wouldn't be coming from someone like me anyway.

 **kAgaMI SuMiKa**

 **0:0:0:0**

 **Soviet Б-01, Centre**

" _Abide by us! Obey the orders we give you!_ "

" _Watch closely, we shall show you our range of power._ " They concurred, whoever they were. The pair didn't say anything back, but Sumika knew they had no choice but to follow.

The white Berkuts belonged to her now, their esper Eishis influenced by her strength. It was far too easy to manipulate others, she never thought the work required would be this low. Dominance was her power, all must answer to her and she only answered to one.

"—lEts AppRISE yOU! foR tHE SAKe of OUr oNLy MaStER!…"

"— -SooN, YoU WilL UnderstanD. WhO WE ServE ShalL BrinG AlonG TomorroW'S HopE."

So the Berkuts stopped moving altogether, their weapons lowered and stance peaceful. Sumika and Kasumi were successful in convincing them to act only as observers, with the rabbit girls and their enemies as the only performers.

"TIMe! thERE iSn'T MuCH LeFT!…"

"-OuR PlaytimE IS OveR, BE GlaD YouR SufferinG WilL EnD HerE."

Attention now converted back to their foes; the two F-22As and Jian-10Xs that had yet to be destroyed.

Their opponents, disoriented by the massive cloud of psychic energy were for the course completely blind. Using this golden set of circumstances to their advantage, Sumika constructed a plan even though none was needed, she wanted to feel smart for once, that was all.

"huRry anD daNce fOr US! AcT ApProPRiatiElY foR a PupPET!…"

"-SurrendeR YourselF, DeatH IS ThE OnlY OutcomE."

Of course, that plan was to just simply kill everything. What else did she need to do anyway?

It was the same as watching crabs trapped in a pot, never aware of their impending death no matter how much the water boils. To her enemies, there was already no chance for victory. And for herself, she didn't even have to spare any lives right now.

The 00 unit's unfortunate prey was the second J-10X who just happened to be there, she wasn't important enough for Sumika to remember her name. For that Eishi's end, Sumika sliced its halberd-holding arm clean off as she made her path on the right side by the Bao-Feng member.

Crossing paths with Sumika as she flew by, next on the attack was Kasumi. The Russian girl pumped a half-full mag of EMP rounds all over the Jian-10's body, utterly removing any possibility of it ever fighting again. As the Second-Gen took its nosedive for the earth, Kasumi side-strafed to her left, ripping the Type-77 Battle Halberd from the dismembered hands of her fallen victim.

"jsUt GViE up, yoU sLOw-wiTTied FOolS!…"

"-AlL ToO EasY, NeveR StooD A ChancE AgainsT US."

What could they do? Thermal? A mass of heated gas could be condensed at Sumika's will. How about laser designation? They were inside a smoke-screen, not even worth mentioning. Seeing as firing blindly or taking an educated guess was just a gamble of luck, nothing seemed to work.

They were invincible, Sumika and Kasumi.

"No AdVaNTAgE! nO OppOrTuUnItY!…"

"-TakeR OF WorldS, GuardianS TO OuR LighT."

Death, only death was ever permitted.

And now there was only one. The last TSF was proving to be quite a bit of trouble as its Eishi fuelled herself using pure rage, the sight was too beautiful Sumika had difficulty with ending such an amazing fire.

What happened to the Raptors again? Sumika wasn't even sure. Were they defeated amidst the chaos? Most likely so. Besides, did it really matter that much where her unentertaining enemies went? Of course not, they were either here or not at all.

For all that joy, Sumika had elsewhere to be, Takeru awaited her presence so she must finish the game at hand. Rocket Boosting for at least the seventeen's time that day, her Su-47 was already noticeable by the Taiwanese Eishi.

The unstable Chinese girl pushed Kasumi away by the build-up of tension gathered in the machine's arms, who she wanted was Sumika; she believed Sumika to be the one who robbed her of everything.

"AcCEpt! We ACcEpT yoUR pOStEd ChALleNge!…"

"-YouR DeterminatioN OnlY ServeS TO MakE YouR DeatH SweeteR."

By that notion, Sumika stopped her acceleration completely. Her Berkut hovered in place, awaiting the final battle to be started by the opposing Eishi. They stared at each other intensely, A mad smile over her front and a detested frown over the Chinese's. Kasumi stood by the sidelines, silently observing the fight.

Impatience was an obvious characteristic of the Bao-Feng leader. When Sumika made no moves within a span of two seconds, her opponent already began her charge. The Type-77 Battle Halberd was pulled back in the right hand, its limbs compacting themselves slightly to unleash a devastating attack.

In the face of imminent danger, Sumika didn't take a single step backward; or forward, or go anywhere and doing anything. She simply rested in place, not even a stance was put up to defend against the Jian-10X's attack.

"UsElesS! Why dO yOU coNtiUNe to StRuGgle!…"

"-EndlesS, OuR StrengtH CannoT BE MeasureD."

It wasn't waiting a second longer. Exploiting her own rocker thrusters, the Jian-10 was hurled ahead incredibly fast. Her compacted right arm was ejected bit by bit the closer she got, a strike at this speed paired with the Jian-10's use of Combined Tension would be impossible to block. The power was just too strong.

" **-Ahha, what a waste, what a waste. Even to this very end, your colour still remains the same unchanging shade…** "

For reasons unknown, Sumika now was once more speaking in harmony with Kasumi. Both girls were evidently faking their lack of interest, as anyone peeking in their camera could tell exactly how wild their grins were.

How much fun, truly. Savour everyone moment, Sumika was sure to do just that.

" **-A sin oF BoREdOm! NoT EntertaininG EnouGH! YoU must PAY foR youR cRIME!** "

Worthless, the Jian-10 could never touch her. The distance it closed in didn't matter, the strength behind its CIWS didn't matter. It shouldn't have even bothered.

" **-DeATH! SentenceD TO DEatH! ThaT ShalL Be YoUR PunishmenT!** "

The J-10X was upon her, now was the time for a counter. Anything would work here, really. For killing a single girl, Sumika didn't trouble with putting in any effort.

So she struck; faster, harder and more brutal than any assaults she dished out earlier. All done with a single press of the button, it was within her mind where most of the attack pattern was carried out. She ruled over her Berkut; it moved by her every will.

At the last fraction of a second possible, the Berkut lifted its left arm and just stretched out. Easy as that, Sumika defeated the remaining member of Bao-Feng. Her Motor Blade cut in between the hand section joint and the forearm section, a tiny gap unfortified by Armour Plating.

" **-YouR DrEaM oF TouchinG US ShalL gO UNfUlfILled FoR ALl Of EternitY!"** Enlightened like never before; both rabbit girls asphyxiated to their endless wave of pleasure.

The hand along with the steel in its grip sailed off, fast and harmlessly behind the 47's head. Even now, none of its body budged save for its left arm which was plentiful in fighting against the Jian-10X.

Their duel had ended, the winner rightfully claims her entitlement to the treatment of her defeated.

"- **HERE IS TO YOUR END! BY OUR HANDS! SPIRITED AWAY! THAT FINAL LIGHT!** " Her chainsaw was lifted high, and swung down hard.

"- **EXEEEECUUUUTEEEED!** " Finally, Sumika and Kasumi reached the long sought after climax.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **05:58 AM**

"—Sumika, Kasumi, we done here? Barchenowa got like thirty seconds left or something, probably should head for the pods now!" Honestly, I wasn't sure if we had enough time left.

"—woRRY noT, TakeRu-cHAN! We HAvE TakEn goOd CarE Of CrYskA-chAN!…"

"— -There'rE StilL TimE LefT, PlentY OF TheM."

"You two sure about that?" Because my watch disagreed,

"- **Absolutely.** " Nice, synchronized creep was better than one.

"Then let's go, bring your lackeys along as well." It was funny, they used to be my lackeys, and now the servants got their own servants.

"oN StATiOn!…" Sumika's statement was the cold hard truth.

Through the thick, intrusive black fog of unknown origin, a sudden split of mist occurred contained by the unbreakable air. Similar to what I imagined the Red Sea was like when the bearded guy and his friends tried to crossed it; the smoke ruptured apart, each half made way for the arrival of a grand beauty.

The Su-47 Berkut was truly a sumptuous work of man, I couldn't deter from admiring its splendour at every look. Sumika rode in with Kasumi's Type-94 closely behind, their jet boosts softened the units' landing as both crafts gracefully came out of NOE.

"Wooow, Arc 2 and 3… you got a, er… little, something there coming from behind your back." Also, did I mention how these two were emitting this hazy smoke like mad?

A black hole which displays gravitational forces so strong, not even light can escape its pull, that was the first impression I got of the smoke. Then how could I describe what Sumika and Kasumi produced from their TSF? Did they cross over from event horizon or something? Utterly ludicrous, yet undeniably real.

The quality of this cloud changed as my rabbit team made their approach, I watched personally with my eyes. From afar, the black smoke only seemed like something from a burnout; a bit strange, yes. But outside the reclaim of reality, probably not.

Now they were close, they were right before me, I couldn't refute the scene of absolute absurdity I witnessed. The light particles were sucked in to the Berkut and Shiranui, their darkness waved and agitated like living, breathing creatures. Some could call them the 'wings' of her TSF, I wouldn't argue against that theory too much.

Finally, obediently following them two were another pair of white Berkuts. They were just kinda there… didn't really serve any purpose. Just happy to be there, I guess.

"So… you two are talking like that because the Prafka thing?"

"-YeS, It'S A Side-EffecT To OuR BeloW A HundreD SynchronizatioN RatE. PleasE AsK ThE ProfessoR FoR FurtheR DetaiL." I was answered by Kasumi.

Thinking back to it, Sumika and Kasumi's tag-team was one of a kind. Throughout my years as an Eishi, I had met less than five people more skillful behind flight sticks than I was. There was never a day when I would have imagined for my two escorts to be stronger than me, indeed quite a revelation.

The pair's fighting style was hard to get a good grip on, I honestly had no idea what was happening half of the time watching their fight. Without proper video playback program, the naked eyes had a difficult period even tracking their movements. The Berkut and Shiranui maneuvered all too frantically, ravishingly and brutally all at once.

If TSF combat was like a game of chess, then Sumika's Element would be compared it a handgun. What good is strategy if the opponent is already dead? It was so simple I couldn't believe I never thought of it before, just pure genius. An Arrowhead 1 formation is useless if nobody could land their shots and a pincer attack goes to waste if everyone dies before attacking.

That was my bunny girls tag-team; they were the best rule-breakers yet.

 **05.59AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, Barrack**

"—Captain! Capt. Shirogane! What's Cryska's status!? It's already after the DEADLINE!"

'Okay me, just don't answer him.' I stealthy muted Bridges' unlimited yelling from reaching my ears.

"Sumika… oh, Sumika. You're gonna be having a time of your life if Barchenowa doesn't come back, okay?" I kindly reminded Sumika for some hustle.

"—Arc 4 to Arc Lead! We're currently sitting inside a giant smoke-screen right now! Data-link and sensors are non-functional at all! Requesting assistance!" That one was also on Sumika.

"You heard that? Fix it."

"…cErTAinly…" She murmured back obediently. Looking at her TSF, nothing differentiated from what it was a second ago. Still, if Sumika did as told to, Class rep should have her maps back now.

"Ah… if you're talking, Takeru, I can't hear you. But we do have real-time update back online, thanks if that's what you did." I thought about calling her back, then again, there wasn't a point for it anymore now.

At this moment, we were just outside the main Soviet building. Sandek was nowhere in sight although he messaged me that everything required for Barchenowa's revival was already set up, we only had to physically enter the room and dump her body in a washing machine.

"Okay, there goes the wall!" I shouted as my AWCAXW whatever sword craved out a huge chuck of the structure, revealing the Russian's old room while also creating an instant path to it.

"C'mon, Sumika. Get over here." Spinning around, I waved my TSF's hand to direct the 00 unit.

Astonishing as it was, the Berkut grabbed its rifle's barrel and stamped it into the ground before taking a knee of all things. My first impression of its stance was like a classic knight often seen in movies, royal and respectable. Perhaps Sumika gained the latter trait which she was in dire need of.

With a quiet hiss, her cockpit block dislodged from the locks and slid out. Two headlights of my YF-23 shining on Sumika gave me a good look of my new, improved childhood friend. For anyone else, it would be an irksome grin of madness which was over Sumika's façade. She smiled like a crazy madman from ear to ear, it was honestly even creepy by my standard.

Sumika stood up from her pilot seat and stared intensely at my unit, almost lecherously if I looked closer at her expression. Then for god knows why, she bent her right leg and kneeled down to my TSF, a classical genuflection like the ancient times. She kept her head lifted as the lustful stare aimed at my TSF escalated in passion.

"mY MaSTeR! WE aRE hEre To caRRy OuT YOur BiDdInG!…" In the same broken Japanese, Sumika stated her role and asked for my order. I couldn't even say this was a first experience for her; being weird, that is.

"Err… okay, okay… ermm… right, what you should do is… err… park next to the building and unload Barchenowa, grab a sheet and fortified suit for her as well. As for Kasumi, guard the perimeters and don't let assholes get close." Why did she waste my time asking this? Was I being trolled?

Pure awkwardness in the air, I was beginning to believe Prafka was just a chuunibyou symptom. I already hated this shit so much. Could Sumika get even more edgy? Not worth finding out.

"- **UndERstOoD!…** " A unison answer this time when Kasumi joined in, hopefully whatever Prafka did wouldn't last permanently.

Sceptically, I moved my TSF out of the way for Sumika to position hers right next to the opening on the wall. Even with herself not actively sitting in the control seat, this girl still managed to walk her fighter perfectly to the building. After serious mental debate, I decided to not further pursuit the topic of her crazy-ass everything for the time being.

Since the breach I chopped in the wall was large enough, I also hopped off my TSF and set foot on the third floor of the Scarlet Twin's lab/room. Quickly, I got to work on the computer connected to the machines for start-up.

"Alright, bring her in!" With a devilish smirk, my 00 unit reached out her palm for nothing and only grasped thin air as she closed her fingers. Interestingly, the esper pod containing Barchenowa voluntarily opened up and flushed out the water without being touched by a physical object.

Using a blanket that probably was in the Berkut, Sumika wiped and wrapped the Russian esper before piggybacking her to the bunch of us waiting in the room. After so long, Barchenowa had returned to her Motherland, albeit in all likelihood not the way she imagined her homecoming.

"Okay… okay… I think I got this, drop her in the left… thingy."

Climbing up a short ladder, Sumika carefully dropped the currently deceased Eishi delicately into the water tank; which was just a glorified washing machine, I must add. After the body was lowered into the tank, she drifted around for a while until settling lifelessly on the bottom.

"WhAT aRE you DoiNg, Takeru-cHan?…"

"I think I'm filtrating her system for… any anomalies and restoring her somatic stability." Maaan, a lotta words I didn't understand popped up in my screen right there. The Russian system had to be a dick and not put the terms in simpler terms.

"Nice, once she's back to full regular person… mood, I'll jam this needle in her heart and hopefully the mana left is enough for a magic trick."

"I SEe. hoW is Cryska-chaN?…"

"No clue, this picture says whatever virus she got almost reached her brain ten minutes ago, but was stopped by something before that. you got a clue to this?"

"Cryska-ChAn told Me, PrafKa stops the virUS, SHe said…"

"Gonna go with that. Sumika, link with the rest and update them. This could take some time, I really hope nothing goes bad."

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Author's note**

So in all the fics in read, the author always says how he/she doesn't own the source material. Which I don't either, this shit is still Age's. Does anyone ever gets sued for this? I also don't own anything I ever referenced in this story. Do I even own this story? Not too sure.

I learned when editing this chapter with notes from my BETA that the word 'hangar' which is plane storage isn't spelled 'hanger'. Just fuck me, right? Can't believe I never knew that, none of it was ever spelled right before. Serious thanks to my BETA, putting up with my crap is ridiculously annoying. You da man, chad001!

Hit me up with anything you want, I'm always here for communication if you got a question, suggestion or a spotted a mistake left. Not gonna lie, this archive is a bit empty these days, I'll still keep posting but that's all I really can do.

BETA done by chad001, thanks for explaining the word 'many' to me

It means a lot.


	35. Total Eclipse of the Heart

**Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Keith Blazer**

 **06:01 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, Centre**

"Boss! Hey, boss! You feeling fine, sir?!"

"Arraaga, never better, Guylos. I'm really getting too old for this shit." Uttering a low grunt, Keith climbed out of his demolished F-22A cockpit with assistance from Infinity 3.

"Good joke, sir. I laughed." That was probably a lie.

Around half a year ago, the Infinities got their tactical asses into the primal seat of America's next generation surface fighters. The F-22A Raptor might have started as a diamond in the rough, but compared to other TSFs out there, it was an actual mineral.

So getting defeated by an Element of Russian pilots was something a bit humiliating for the 65th's leader. Still, even with their frames disabled and crashed, the Infinities were not going to hang in the towel just yet.

"Damn, we kinda took a beating, huh?"

"Yeah, no shit. The Russian twins literally crapped out a smoke screen from their asses. Can't say I saw that coming, if it had been anyone else, they would be dead much sooner." A few snaps on his neck fixed the last of Keith's strained body caused from falling straight down in his Raptor.

A small hut was completely flattened by Keith's dead TSF, the fall damaged his craft way beyond repair without a proper crew. The same could be said for Guylos' machine, which lay broken not too far from his.

"It's unfortunate, what we gonna do now, boss?"

"The Chinese also got downed, they're probably dead but we still have to check in case. After that, head for a hangar to see if there's any units remaining we can use."

"Sounds like a plan." Examining his sidearm as he left the Raptor behind, a silent but costly explosion fried the surface fighter from the inside and made it impossible to be recovered by enemies.

"Have you blown yours?"

"Yeah, sad to see it go, had to be done."

—

A short walk later, both Americans arrived at the site of another incapacitated droid. The Chinese Jian-10X while appearing to be mostly intact, it was missing its right hand and the frontal cover of its cockpit. Although this didn't promise the safety of its pilot, at least now whoever had the unfortunate luck of riding this wouldn't be recorded as K.I.A instantly.

"This pilot doesn't seem too dead if she got away from the crash." Keith remarked. He looked around his surroundings in search for its driver, none was found.

"That should be at least one survivor."

"Alright, I'm gonna check the cockpit, watch my back, Guylos."

"Understood."

Step by step, Keith mantled up the side of this TSF, careful as to not fall down and be seen as a man past his prime. Above the J-10's tore open cockpit block, he saw nothing in the seat or anyone near the helm.

"Hey, you! American! Don't move!" Somebody was shouting at him to freeze in place from somewhere he couldn't see. The cocking of a gun could be heard; however the voice carried no menace within.

"By that voice, you're Bao-Feng, right?" Serenely and motionlessly, Keith recognized the obvious Chinese accent even when her sentence was translated.

"Hou, Infinities, then? I was worried about you." The noise of a holstered pistol allowed him to relax his muscles and turn around.

"You're not the Captain, are you?"

"No, Bao-Feng 3. You don't really care for my name, do you?" The Chinese girl had a point there.

"Are you the only survivor?"

"Also no, you'll be surprised by how many are still alive. Is the cockpit empty, by the way?" After answering Keith's question, the Chinese soldier posted her own.

"Yeah, whoever was here left not too long ago."

"…Damn, well, let's talk on the ground." Agreeing to the friendly sounding pilot, Keith and her slid off the left leg to regroup with his teammate standing by the crashed unit.

"Hey, boss— oh, then you met them already."

"Huh, so the Bao-Feng had no casualties? That doesn't make any sense." Taking in the view he was encompassing, Keith thought how unnatural the logically unmanageable phenomenon was.

There stood the Chinese PLA pilots along with Guylos, that in itself was nothing to feel awed about. However, what caught Keith's regard was the number of Mandarin speaking personnel by them; it was two-too many.

Three ladies were conversing with one another and Infinity 3, each of them could be distinguished by their unique traits. One girl had a long pony-tail, another was rolling with a bun tied by a white scarf, and lastly was a plain short-haired female which made up the Bao-Feng.

"Did you find Ane-san?"

"No, we don't know where she is."

"This's kind of bad… in so many ways too." The PLA combatants commented between themselves for a bit.

"Is Capt. Cui missing?" Asked Keith, in place of an answer he was shot some mistrusting glares and heard more discussions in Mandarin amongst the three.

"…Yeah, we can't find her for the moment. This's her TSF." Whatever the UFC's people agreed on, it looked to be cooperation with the Infinities had the most consent.

"How did you guys not lose anyone? No offence but didn't two of your J-10s got cut up?" A blunt investigation by Guylos had the Bao-Feng taken aback which led to more Mandarin words being spoken.

"It was really strange, when the Berkut came for me and slashed the machine apart, I felt myself dying. The systems all went down and nothing was responding, but a while later it came back online shorty before I hit the ground. So for some reason, the feed captured by the sensors didn't match up with reality." Speaking again, one of the pilots disclosed her personal experience with being killed and not dying.

"That's… I see, it must have been OS hacking by their people. I didn't think that was possible." A conspicuous lie cannot be unveiled if the victims had no access to the truth.

Keith knew much more about the data-link based hacking and the second generation of stealth functions installed into the YF-23 quite well. That was why he got even more confused as none of the abilities allowed direct hacking of the sensory data provided by their TSF optics.

"Something is definitely not right over here." Infinity 3 had the same idea as Keith, he just announced it first.

"Yeah, I just wish those two are having better luck than we are."

 **Takamura Yui**

 **06:03 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, Outskirt**

Melee Halberds were the most expendable weapons on the battlefield second to bullets, the simple nature of their design plus the ease of construction and material cost make Japan's Type-74 one of the frequently featured armament for most combat scenarios.

The PB Blade was an all-around close quarter melee tool, fast draw and fast strikes made it a favourite amongst IJA and IRG alike. Albeit their choices might be a little limited.

"—WHY!? Why must you disrupt our restfulness!? What is it that you seek, Mitsurugi-sama!?" Yui shouted, her plea for peace was answered by another powerful swing of the purple 00's CIWS.

Black clouds covered out the sky, her view of the world impaired by this everlasting mist. Still considering the distance between these two rivals at war, a little lack of far-sight was nothing to be tense about.

Standing on guard above the white snow, Yui sidestepped the sideways cut by mere inches before retreating further back using a quick boost. She couldn't fight back, she couldn't dare to hurt the royalty her family had served all this time. Doing so would be a betrayal to the long line of history her father carved.

Yui was naïve; she had to admit to that fault of hers. The Fudai believed herself to be at least on par with Mitsurugi's skills, that was a fatal misjudgement on her part. Not only was the violet Type-00R more powerful on a basic level, it also was adapting movements impossible for Yui's 00F.

Mitsurugi was pushing her back swing by swing, the sword in her right hand fiercely came down upon Yui at every angle. Not a motion was wasted as she cavorted marvellously like a child, wielding a death-dealing edge with such magnitude.

"Please tell me, Mitsurugi! I cannot accept this! Why are you attacking Yukon Base instead of protecting our Empire!?" Frustrated and infuriated, Yui forgot for the second time to add honorific to the end of Mitsurugi's name.

"—focus, Takamura. Reach your goal of defeating me, then will you gain the right to question my action." There was no haste in her voice, no sense of anxiety when the royalty spoke back.

"Mitsurugi-SAMA! There's no reason for us to keep fighting! I beg of you! Please tell me your objective! We can work together to reach it!"

"Be quiet and continue our scuffle, I will not reply anymore. Fight me with the intent to kill, Takamura, this is your last chance of redemption." Her offer for peace was rejected and replaced by a heavy blow of Mitsurugi's blade, Yui deflected away the impact barely in time.

"Is… is this really your true purpose, Mitsurugi-sama!? Is this not treason to our nation!?" As she promised, the purple haired Eishi did not say anything back.

Yui couldn't fathom Mitsurugi's way of thinking, what could she possibly be doing here that required for the base itself to be attacked? Not one thing was visualized by her on the source behind her lord's apparent betrayal, nothing made any sense; none of it.

Yui believed Mitsurugi to be a friend, someone who understood her. However, the assault on Yukon which the Royal blood was a part of deterred the belief she held. The Honour Guard was confused, disheartened and dejected by Mitsurugi's unwillingness to share her secrets.

So no matter how unsure she was, Yui fought back under the pretext of following Mitsurugi's order. Her withdrawing Takemikazuchi reversing its heading in a flash, ducking under a heavy horizontal swing in the nick of time as she made a repelling stab, pushing the purple 00 back for her to gain a breather.

"Mitsurugi-sama… I shall comply to your request." In satisfaction, Yui's opponent bounded back to regain her footing and took a proper stance.

Now was the start of a duel, no longer a one-sided battery, Yui had every means of serving the intense battle which Mitsurugi sought from her.

She rushed on, faster than ever, her petals couldn't be any closer to the metal. Rapid collisions of iron swords spawned fiery sparks, Yui threw her weight against the frame before her, series after series of firm hits pushed Mitsurugi into defence.

Owning the supremacy by a swift turn of events, Yui bashed her PB-Blade repetitively on Mitsurugi's guard. Her attacks were well calculated, she had to show the royalty she wasn't just a regular soldier commonly found off the streets.

"This is what I am expecting, Takamura. You have skills, I shall grant you such admission."

"Haa! Haa…! Thank you, Mitsurugi-sama."

"Do not stop yet, I am still before you. Show no mercy, go for the kill. Or else, you will have nothing left to protect." If Mitsurugi's aim was to trigger Yui, she certainly succeeded in doing so.

Yui debated internally, could she kill a member of the royal family? Was she up for a task bearing such responsibility? She didn't know the reason Mitsurugi came to this base; the way she behaved, the entangling nature of their fight, nothing made sense.

"…Mitsurugi-sama… are you testing me?"

"Tell me, Takamura. Why do you fight?" Answering a question with a question, Mitsurugi's response confirmed Yui's previous idea.

"I… fight for the sake of protecting Japan, protecting the future of humanity!"

Without notice or Yui's comprehension, Mitsurugi planted her single sword into the earth. She stood her machine up straight, no longer remaining in a stance for battle.

"Carry the weight of your resolve, Takamura. Slay me, here and now. Do not hesitate." A quiet hiss, too quiet to be picked up by her detection sensor emitted from Mitsurugi's frame. Yui still heard the sound, she knew it was there when the purple-haired samurai stepped out from her cockpit.

"Mitsurugi-sama!? NO! It's too dangerous! Please step back!" Of course Yui panicked, abandoning the shelter of an armoured mecha amid an endless battle was too risky to ever be considered.

"I cannot understand you, Takamura. You fear for my safety, yet you are focused with my death in mind."

"Please, NO! I never would wish to hurt you, Mitsurugi-sama!" She ran over, shielding Mitsurugi's vulnerable body with Yui's TSF. She covered her completely, not wishing to take any chances.

"Takamura, come out." It was an order she couldn't disobey.

Yui dislodged the clamps holding back her seat. When she breathed the outside air again, Mitsurugi was only metres away from the Royal Guard. A slight sight caused Yui to flinch instinctively, and that was the pistol held in Mitsurugi's hand.

"…Mitsurugi-sama, if you demand my life… I will gladly forfeit it for your sake. So please if nothing else, let me know whether this decision of yours will benefit Japan!" In her end, this was all Yui cared about.

Yuuya was important; however not as important as the Imperial Empire. Her mission was important; that was because it was for the purpose of aiding the Imperial Empire. Japan was Yui's life, she wil never have what it takes to desert it.

"Such loyalty, I am touched by your patriotism, Takamura. Even when a source of evil is present before you, you are incapable of striking it down due to my heritage."

"…Yes, I am weak. I cannot go against my teachings. So I can only pray, pray that what you're doing is just." Mitsurugi's gun was still held tight, its safety flicked off and hammer cocked back.

"You are incapable, Takamura. Luckily, this is your saving grace." Her words now confused Yui more than ever. In one swift motion, Mitsurugi disabled her gun and re-holstered it by her side.

"Mitsurugi-sama…?"

"Takamura… you used to be a vassal for Takatsukasa Kyoko-dono during the 1998 invasion, correct?" The perplexing change of subject made Yui more confounded than ever.

"Err… yes, that is correct."

"Then you may as well be disappointed by the chaos currently boiling in our capital… nonetheless, I shall explain everything, starting from the most relevant.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **06:08 AM**

"2nd Lt. Barchenowa died…!?"

"Was dead, Takamura. We're currently on the process of reviving her." Meiya corrected.

"Yes, my apology… then Mitsurugi-sama, how are the circumstances now?"

"Takeru is currently reviving her as we speak. My assumption is for this operation to be of success." Takamura was looking relieved, joyful and concerned all at the same time.

"That is indeed marvelous news." However, she spoke words of happiness.

"We are pulling out now, Takamura. This is where my duty comes in, I must bring you along with me." By Meiya's reveal, Takamura lifted her head in disbelief and was shocked heavily.

"What— for what reason do you need me, Mitsurugi-sama!?"

"As I stated earlier, you are an incompetent woman, Takamura. Someone unable to act for one's own gain, I do not value that highly. Nevertheless, this once the trait of yours shall be your redemption." Her words hurt the Royal Guard, but it was words she couldn't deny.

"Is there something I can do?"

"In the capital, there is an on-going hunt for traitors after an assassination on the heads of many Regent Houses was carried out." Another surprise took Takamura off guard, she stared blankly straight for a few seconds as speech did not come easy.

"What happened!?" It was only logical to be curious after hearing such an event.

"The heads to Saionji and Kujou have unfortunately perished in that detestable attack, both of their heirs are yet too young to bear the responsibility of Regent House."

"No… NO! Th-th-that CANNOT BE!" Beyond shocked, Takamura's expression was absolutely petrified.

"The head of the Ikaruga Household suffered multiple injuries and is currently being treated in the hospital. Ikaruga Takatsugu is not in life-threatening danger, however recovery will take time." Meiya expressed nothing, only Takamura still appeared utterly destroyed by such a tragic tale.

"No…! Impossible…! Please, Mitsurugi-sama! Tell me it's not true! PLEASE!"

"Takamura, do not think for a second I am not as devastated by this as you are." Through her reminder, the Royal Guard stopped completely. Undoubtedly Meiya would be the sadder of them two, people who died were friends and acquaintances.

"I… understand, forgive me, Mitsurugi-sama. What was their method of attack?" Takamura slowly collected herself, as much as she had problem accepting the facts, there was nothing to be done.

"Planted explosives, details are unconfirmed for now." For now, Meiya could only report the situation as if it really was an emotionless record. It was Tsukuyomi who informed Meiya earlier, in the same monotonous voice she used now.

"Has the criminal been caught?"

"No, the investigation is still underway. A lead has been found but no further evidence to work on." It was just bad news one after another.

"I'm deep in sorrow and anger, Mitsurugi-sama… I plead to the heavens for justice to be done. Yet, as terrible as I must sound, I find this unrelated to our situation."

"I am requesting you to become an official vassal for the Koubuin Household, under my direct command." Another one, Meiya laid out two bombshells back to back.

"What!? Mitsurugi-sama! I am merely a—"

"An inherited Fudai born from generations of servants, someone perfect for the role of my retainer." Having her sentence finished by Meiya, Takamura was deprived of a reason to refuse.

"Bu-but still! Why me, Mitsurugi-sama!? What does this have to do with the assassination?!"

"As of now, our capital is in angst. Cries for punishment to be served for those who sinned. This only fuelled the already ongoing conflict between my house of Koubuin and the rest of the Regent Houses, Her Highness' new rule for power has been seen as a step towards monarchy."

"Her Highness… all this was started by the 12/5 incident!"

"Truly, factions are splitting, Takamura. For someone as loyal as you are, I ask for your strength to be lent to our cause. This is for your protection as well; a Fudai without an allegiance is seen as a potential traitor during this time."

Meiya hated the idea of disagreement within the Imperial Shogunate, but struggles are fated to arise when ideals clash. And as someone in her position, there was not an opinion to pick a side. Although she never sought to do so ever before.

"…For that reason alone!?" Not concealing her frustration, Takamura probably felt betrayed that her years of labour were rendered worthless for simply not belonging to a house.

"Indeed, it is tragic that an honourable servant like you would be suspected of treason. Now that I have tested you, Takamura. I swear to vouch for your innocence."

"…Thank you very much, Mitsurugi-sama!" A bit more determined now, Takamura took another bow.

"Your weakness, I shall assist in purging it from existence. My Captain seeks for a better world, and I wish to invite you along. This current war is only temporary, overcoming this trial shall lay down our path to a peaceful tomorrow."

"Mitsurugi-sama…" Takamura considered, she put everything she was onto a scale for calculation.

"Obey me, Takamura, and I shall become your leader. Conquer our time of suffering, what it shall lead to will be a bright future for both you and that man sharing your blood. I swear to you, this is the only way to protect yourself as a woman and as an Honour Guard." That would be the best outcome, for every party involved.

"Accept my hand; pledge your devotion to our conviction. And in the name of Koubuin Yuuhi, I shall guarantee for you to profit." Meiya knew she had persuaded the girl wavering before her. She acted as her beacon of hope, Takamura had nothing left other than her loyalty to Japan.

Meiya was doing this for two reasons; she believed this to be what her sister saw as correct without a doubt, the power to protect an entire nation must be acquired for the sake of their land. And also, this was what it took to achieve his dream.

"I understand… I am forever in debt to your kindness." So Takamura picked quickly, no more indecisiveness was needed.

"Good, Takamura. You made the right decision, I shall see it through as such."

The brunette kneeled down, genuflected before Meiya. One arm was brought forward to chest level and her head kept low, Takamura was trusted by the Koubuin heir, and thus received a warm welcome.

"Mitsurugi Meiya-sama; your servant, Takamura Yui, will henceforth abide by your every command."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **06:11 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, Barrack**

"We're looking good. If this panel ain't being a lying bitch, Barchenowa is good to go."

"Did we get it? Yaay!" Her voice was so annoying I almost forgot the normal Sumika had returned.

"Hey, welcome back."

"Oh, yeah! I switched off Prafka mode earlier and just got done with rebooting my system! I can talk normally for now!" If that was what happened, then sure; I wasn't asking any questions.

"That's fine and all, but don't those two out there need a supervisor?" Save for one.

"Ahaha! Kasumi-chan got them! Besides, dolls like that are only fakes anyway! I won't be so worried!" I wouldn't say it in Kasumi's face if I were her.

"If you say so, let me grab her body." I pecked Sumika smoothly on the cheeks before walking away.

A side portal popped open just big enough for my body to fit through, on the inside laid the still very dead and naked Barchenowa. Before going pass, I grabbed the towel that was hanging to the side of the water tank; same one Sumika wrapped her in earlier.

With the cloth in hand, I stepped inside the washing machine and surveyed my surroundings; there was nothing to see. Barchenowa's body was warm and a little moist when I touched her cheeks, her eyes sealed tight and features unmoving. I carefully cloaked the Russian to avoid her of any shame later on, not before getting a nice squeeze in on her juicy oppai though; I deserved that much.

"Sumika, get the injector to me." Instead of replying like she normally would, the Ahoge girl materialized in front of me just as I got up, faster-than-light travel was probably how she got here.

"Here, take her to the bed."

"Okay!" I handed the body to her as she passed the needle to me, smooth moves all around. Sumika carried the white-head princess style and lowered her onto the plain single bed just beside this water tank.

"Take the needle, you're giving her the shot."

"Wha—! No! You give her the shot, idiot Takeru-chan!" Maybe respectful, loyal Sumika wasn't so bad.

"Stupid bitch… I ain't giving her the shot!"

"I'm not giving her the shot either!"

"You retarded or something?! I never done this before!"

"I never done this before either!" I swear to god this woman…

"Look here, dumbass! The next time I bring you a comatose bitch that needs me to fight an entire army of dudes just to bring her back then I'll give her the shot. You'll take this fucking needle and jam it straight in her heart, got it!?

"EEEEEEEE! Fine! Fine, fine fine-fine-fine!" For now, I'll just be happy her articulation reverted back to normal.

Not much of a choice even if Bridges most likely wouldn't enjoy the idea, I had to remove his girlfriend's sheet if it meant saving her life. My nurse on duty was Sumika, she stood closely to my side as I stripped down the blanket.

"Okay next step, you gotta find where her heart is. Do one of them X-ray things with your super-eyes."

"Sure, I can do that! Does it has to be exact though!?" Why was she even here in the first place?

"Gee, I don't know! We're giving her a shot to the heart so I guess it has to be fucking exact! Because it's not like anything will go wrong if I pump her lungs full of whatever this shit is, right!?"

The 00 unit waved her right hand across Barchenowa's body like a MRI scanner, looking for the prime area, preferably the heart for our inoculation.

"Okay, I know where her heart is. Is there anything I can mark it with?"

"You're a freaking supercomputer! Just do some fancy calculations and don't miss!"

"Aggrrra! That's not how I work, Takeru-chan! I'm only human too!" Literally not true.

"Stop bullshitting me and just get her back up already! Stab! Stab, stab!" I was infuriatingly shaking Sumika for her to pick up the pace.

"What!? I stab her three times!?"

"NO! Just once! Right on the heart and pull the trigger!" Productive combo as always; Sumika and I, never a problem.

I pressed a few buttons on the side of her injector and primed it for high-pressure inoculation of her drugs. To be completely honest, I had no clue how this gun-looking needle functioned, I assumed it was just like a hypospray often seen in movies and such; optimistically there wasn't much of a difference.

"Okay, here! I marked the spot with my blood! Hold my hand, Takeru-chan!"

"Sure, that I can do." We had finally recollected our shit after a quick argument.

The sharp end was pointed directly on the centre of the X, I steadied Sumika's hands on the bedframe to ensure no accidents due to terrible targeting. I secretly prayed to nothing as she pulled the trigger, a weak pew sound was noted after the counter fixed on the side of this injector read zero.

"C'mooon, girl. Pull yourself together now, Bridges' gonna owe me so much if this actually works." Most cases, I hated anything where a factor existed which was not within my control, those situations always turned out terribly wrong. So having another one relying on pure luck really ticked me the wrong way.

"Shouldn't we perform CPR for Cryska-chan?" To my left, Sumika watched intensely for a good dozen seconds before asking.

"Normally, yeah. But I don't even know how that will help in a situation like this. Sensei said the meds jump starts her heart, although I'm betting this is way different from normal. Besides, we don't want to accidently crack her ribs or anything and pay the hospital bill."

"So smarrrt, Takeru-chan!"

"Thanks… non-Prafka Sumika, being call that sure makes me happy—" Apparently, I wasn't happy enough to be not interrupted.

"HAAAA—! ACk— ARCCk! Acr— HAAaaa…" Her return to life certainly didn't start with a whisper, I could say that much.

"Worked though, I'm the best."

Cutting off my sentence, the Russian girl hacked nastily as she coughed out some unknown substance from her lungs and spat it all over herself. Nonetheless, after a couple of exhausted breath for air, Barchenowa was back on the land of the living.

"Please don't say Yuuya—"

"Yuuya…? Is that you?"

"Fucking called it." I was so good at this prediction business, maybe I had a future career in being a gypsy. Some makeup would surely make me look like a dark-skinned grandma.

"Here, adjust your eyes. Take it slow and easy." I swiped my palm over the delicate girl's front, covering and exposing her sight to the light slowly. Barchenowa wearily blinked a few times, trying her hardest to recuperate even when her body was in such a futile state.

"Who… are you? Where am I?" The basic questions anyone out of a coma would ask.

"Don't be scared, I'm here to help you. I'm with Brid— I mean Yuuya and Inia, we came here to save you and now we're leaving." In return, I gave the most cliché answer possible.

"Yuuya, Inia… they're both here!?"

"Yep, yep. Can you stand?" Washing away her confusion, Barchenowa rubbed her forehead gently to ease away an undeniably painful headache. Gradually, she sat up from the bed and surveyed the room at the same time. Her continuous gaze into reality around her only told me how unanticipated the girl was at being revived.

Feebly and ever so slightly, Barchenowa weakly crossed her legs back and forth, getting used to her newly activated figure. Even in this state with a bit of vomit trailing from her lips and onto her chest, this girl was still definitely a great sight to behold.

"Do you need a hand, Cryska-chan?" Part of the observers until she acted, Sumika reached out and stabled Barchenowa's body as she tried to get off the bed.

"Sumika… right? Thank you, for helping me."

"Don't mention it!" While Sumika's shiny orbs looked as bizarre as ever, the eerie grin was finally wiped away by a friendly smile for the Russian.

Carefully, Sumika secured the esper's footing as both girls stood up from the bed. A few steps later, Barchenowa was well balanced in every stride on her own. She looked around her old room again, a gaze of reminiscence was faintly resonating in her violet irises.

"Thank you as well for saving me… err… Ta-Takeru-c-chan?" Now this was pure gold, that must been what Sumika called me by during all her talk with the recently dead girl. Literally being hundreds of years since anyone else named me that.

"Yeah, no problem. We gotta go though, wipe yourself clean and put this on." I threw her the towel we used earlier and the fortified suit Sumika took from the Berkut.

Acquiescent was the Russian esper, she scrubbed off the fluid and donned the suit I provided without second guessing my orders. As a mental reward for myself, I imprinted the image of a nude Barchenowa into my head before the outfit covered her up.

"Barchenowa, you ready to go?"

"Da, what am I to do now?" A charming flicker of her hair was the last step in equipping the proper gear for combat; Barchenowa shuddered her body before she was officially set.

"First, let me welcome you back to our world, Second Lieutenant. Been quite a journey we had so far to get you back, I expect some reward later."

"Arr, o-of course, I'll do my best to… fulfill your expectations…" Her hesitance was largely forgivable, I found no fault in acting confused by her situation.

"Appreciate it. Moving on though, we'll have you buckle up with Sumika in the Berkut and head for extraction. Don't worry about combat and such, just ride along."

"Sir… may I ask a few questions regarding the current state of affairs?" Respect was something I hadn't enjoyed in a while, so getting noticed as a proper superior made me all tiggly inside.

"Well, you know who you are, where you are, why you are here. What you don't know is who we are, why we saved you and where we are going; none of which I'm willing to answer. What else you wanna ask?"

"Errr… what's your rank, sir?" I shot her a blink look for that out of place question.

"Captain."

"Then may I address you as Capt. Takeru-chan?" What was that, I couldn't hold back my laughter from her totally outrageous idea.

"Pfff! Ahahaha! Sure, sure! Call me exactly that from now on, got it?"

"Understood."

"Good, any other questions, go to Sumika. We're leaving ASAP, move it!"

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **Soviet Б-01, Airstrip**

 **06:14 AM**

"—artillery strike on grid D-8! Get clear!"

"—additional fast movers coming in! F-18 Hornet! Headcount eight! Distance undetermined!"

"—requesting heavy suppressive fire by area Q-1, move the hostile Falcons."

"Laid down heavy fire on the closer frames! The LZ is too hot for landing!"

"—Archangel 8! Can you get a shot in on the F-15s!?"

"The black fog is still too thick! I need designation!"

"That's not possible! Just hit'em as you see'em!"

"That's the problem! I can't see'em!"

The theatre of war was what Yuuya exposed himself to as he approached his destination, devastated TSF laid waste to the land surrounding their objective for defence, an intact airstrip was what Yuuya must protect for exfil.

"—Idar 1 coming in on your three, requesting orders." So Yuuya naturally had his role to fulfill, along with Inia by his side.

"—activate a high frequency ECM, Idar 1! Blind all unfriendlies by us!" The glasses person who acted as nonpermanent leader asked.

"Roger that, all transmission jammed, proximity ECM online." A few good keystrokes on the control provided Yuuya with exactly what Archangel 4 required.

Almost immediately, many of the TSFs closer to him flinched noticeably. Their data-link brought down by the 94's unauthorized access to the system they used. A loss of command could be seen as a Platoon of F-16s made their convoluted retreat, blinded by Yuuya's countermeasure, they failed to pull away in time.

"Inia, we'll take these ones."

"Okay, they'll be just like everyone else."

—

"—casualty, casualty! Arc 8 is down! Counting two hostile Rapto— aghrra! DAMN IT FUCK!" In a flash, one of the Shiranuis on the east side was struck down; an accurate shot to the head destroyed its sensors and blinded its pilot. The injured Type-94's wingman was subsequently showered by bullets, forcing it to pick up her teammate and run.

"—Raps? I thought Sumika got'em all…"

"—That's just not true, Kei-san! They're pushing in, evade!" Leading the incursion, a pair of F-22s broke past the Archangel's guard and compelled Yuuya's team to forfeit ground for shelter.

"Shit, we're getting pinned really hard! Don't panic and retreat! Hold your ground for a bit longer!"

"Idar 1will now engage the hostile Raptors, the rest of you can provide covering fire." So obviously, being a spectator ended here for Yuuya. There existed foes only he alone could face.

"Thanks for the save, Idar 1! Go get'em!"

"Always the plan, Archangels."

 **Leon Kuze**

 **06:19 AM**

Leon hated it; ambushing his enemies was not a tactic he enjoyed acting out, but it had its merit, which only made him hate it more.

Keith ordered for the pair to break off and lay low around the airfield, said that was where the invaders must head to eventually. And the team leader was correct, one hundred percent on the mark with that assumption. Leon and Sharon caught a Flight of 94s chased by UN reinforcement, a bloodbath between TSFs took place right before their eyes.

"—I think I got two downed but the rest backed away, what do you say?" In a critical time such as this, Sharon had to get serious and judge Leon's input.

"—you think?"

"I can't see anything through this bullshit smoke, I aimed for muzzle flashes but they still got EMP shooters left." That sounded logical so Leon stopped asking.

"We'll support the UN forces, push them off the runway and then intercept the plane above."

"But with this heavy jamming and the cloud, you think he could be here?"

"…Yeah, I know he's here somewhere, just gotta pick off his ass and the jamming would be gone."

When they decided the time was right, Leon and Sharon joined in the fight with guns blazing. A swift assault was what Sharon had in mind, but her first target dodged miraculously out of the way. Leon then pushed in to back her up, injuring another 94 in the process. However, the pair of Japanese fighters fled away from danger before they could be finished.

"They're hold up good in this fog, neither side can see each other, it seems." Leon wanted to call this a double-blind situation, although that was more associated with psychology.

"My scanners are jackshit right now, can't even pick up the friendlies around here."

"Fuck it all, you keep overwatch and I'll scout out the surroundings. With smoke this thick, they won't detect… us… is that…? Sharon, MOVE!" Consternation settled in as Leon turned himself around, a barrage of long range 36 and 120mm bolted him by and aimed for the F-22A floating above him.

"ARRack! —Son-of-a-bitch that was too close!" Suddenly shouting a line out of her character, Sharon's frame pulled a hard dive too late and was wounded on her left arm.

"That was him! That definitely was him!" Even if all he saw was a glance through the black smoke, Leon still identified his long-time rival.

"Yuuya, he's showing himself directly, huh?"

"—Yuuya Bridges! That's you, alright!" Angrily, Leon popped open a public channel and screamed for the other man.

"—don't shout over the comms, Leon. I can hear you perfectly." Yuuya said back; he was not angry, he was not excited, he had little emotion in his reply.

Out of the darkness, the form of a TSF slowly became apparent. Yuuya ditched his cloak of shadows and instead faced the two Raptors head on. An uncaring mood was prevalent throughout his voice as the Shiranui Second tossed away its last rifle. The former test pilot made it obvious to Leon, this was his final fight at Yukon.

"—Yuuya! It really is you, Yuuya! Why are you doing this!?" Hovering adjacent to Leon was Sharon's F-22, she yelled his name over the open channel, trying to get Yuuya to reveal his truth.

"Yuuya, you bastard! Turning against the States is bad enough but coming here and attacking Yukon!? What the fuck are you thinking?!"

"Nothing for you to be concerned about, Leon. I'm giving you the chance right now to leave, do that and we won't meet again, ever."

"Asshole! I can't let you hightail outta here! You gonna answer for what you did!" Irritation riled up Leon's attitude towards Yuuya. What he said, what he had done, none of it was acceptable.

"You have to tell us, Yuuya! We can help you! We're your friends, please trust us!" Acting kindly as always, Sharon recommended a more passive method of appeasement.

"If it was help I wanted I've stayed away from here. Leon, Sharon, don't get in my way or I'll show no mercy. The rest of your Platoon already got taken down, go recover them and just forget all this happened." Indifferently came his declaration, all that did for Leon was pissing him of further.

"First Lieutenant and Guylos!? BULLSHIT! There's no way they—" The notification of a transferred data package interrupted Leon's sentence. Tentatively, he accessed the file and found it to be a roster.

"What is this, Yuuya?" Sharon no doubt also received the same list.

"It's the listing of all UN forces on site recorded by us, updated in real-time. Take a look for yourselves." So Leon did, and the information was an absolute thunderbolt.

"…No way! This's a fucking fake!" Rejection was often the first response to unfavourable news.

"You can believe whatever you want."

"Yuuya… you're willing to go this far…? For what!?" Sharon too, she couldn't imagine her old friend would change this dramatically.

Like Yuuya said, the roster showed all UN forces currently registered as occupants of Yukon, even the Infinities and Bao-Feng were on that document. But what it recorded was much harder to take in; it had everyone other unit besides the Infinities marked as K.I.A, every single one of them.

"I'm determined, Sharon. I can't half-ass it here."

"But… everyone you knew, everything you had is gone now! How can you live with that?!" Yuuya abandoned everything in his past when he deserted his duty, now he came back to erase everything he couldn't belong along.

"You son of a bitch! Who did you kill to GET THIS FAR!?"

"We didn't— no. I personally got rid of Australia's Hanersy, Europe's Slechtvalk and Sleipnir, many of the 21st Security and most of Argos." Hearing his confession in that heartless voice was more infuriating than ever to the American pilot, the man before him was a traitor, it couldn't be denied.

"You killed your own team!? FOR WHAT!?"

"Cryska needs me, I have to save her."

"Who the fuck are you talking about—!?"

"You mean 2nd Lt. Barchenowa? The Scarlet twin?" Sharon remembered, the name of Russian's most feared Test Pilot Element.

"For a woman!? You're doing all this for a woman!?"

"She's my woman, you don't need to know anything else." It was like what happened with 1st Lt. Rick Sven all over again, Leon's hatred for Yuuya was reignited due to his absurd action.

"You're a real piece of shit, Yuuya Bridges! Your ass is so going down!"

"Give me a minute first, let me take this call."

"What the FUCK are yo—!"He couldn't stop the former US Test Pilot from going off comms.

"Leon… we should get outta here fast, the UN reinforcements are getting massacred by something." While Leon was distracted and unsettled by Yuuya's actions, Sharon had a more calming demeanor and logical train of thoughts.

"What… how did you know?"

"Look to your left, stupid." And so Leon did as told, what he came into his sight was nothing dangerous on its own, it was just the C-141 which had been circling above until now.

His first instinct told him to fill it up with lead, that will surely temper with whatever Yuuya had planned. But not knowing the content and the possible personnel aboard, doing so could very much earn him the same treatment as Yuuya if he catches him soon.

"It's landing…?! Even under this heavy fire—" That was the reason why it descended in the first place, there were no friendlies anywhere near the pair of Raptors and they didn't even notice.

"Shit! Is that a Su-47?! Eyes front!" An alarming shout stemmed from Sharon. Leon lifted his head to search for the machine she called out, but he found none.

"—AyaHAhAAhhA! NamELEsS onES Of thE WeSt! We shAlL See youR EnDuARnce!..."

"— -SalvagE YouR OwN PathetiC LiveS, KnoW ThaT OuR MercY LastS NoT FoR LonG."

Leon heard declarations, he was at the very minimum sure it was voices he heard. Because that sound didn't originate from his earpiece. Over and over again, it resonated aggravatingly in his head. Like a bad hangover, those strange words wouldn't shut up.

"What the… fuck was that!? Sharon! You okay?!"

"Yeah, I heard people talking to me… directly to me!" Sharon suffered the same phenomenon as him.

"The hell is happening here!? Where's the Berkut!?"

"It just… passed us… this's bad, this's really bad, Leon! We need to bail now!" Her facial expression was exhibiting the same message, Sharon feared the consequence of remaining any longer.

"But he's right there! We won't get another chance till who know when—"

"—Leon, this is your final chance, go back to your team and get away from here." Back on the comms, Yuuya issued his final threat.

"Fuck that! I'm bringing you in!" Irritated beyond control, Leon readied his rifles and was done with talking.

"Haa… this's too much. Inia, show them we mean business." Yuuya addressed someone else entirely different just then. And what's more, he didn't switch away from his line, meaning the person happened to be within earshot.

"No way, the Phase 3 is a two-seater!? Leon, stop! You can't go up against tha—" Sharon's realization and succeeding warning all came too late.

Leon boost started his machine, Jump Units propelled him high up and all four assault cannons firing off uncountable amount of leads. However, what the Shiranui Second did was much more intense in nature, it ruptured in energy; literal visible energy to the naked eye.

Blue clashed against black, two bursts of colour struggled profoundly to gain a stronger foothold. Eventually, the wave of blue cloud surrounding the 94 Second dispersed the black smoke hogging its personal space, clearing the air of darkness and instead replacing it with a cobalt sea.

"NO! LEON—!" What happened next, Leon had no clue. He eyes functioned normally, yet he saw nothing. It was all too strange, Yuuya was right before him, but he couldn't do anything, nothing at all

 **Sharon Heim**

 **06:23 AM**

"—Sharon, get this idiot out of here."

"—ahhhha! What the fuck just—" Sharon's mind was miles behind reality, her senses couldn't react to the lunacy her sensors reported back.

Intuitively, she dropped the pair of assault rifles to catch what Yuuya threw into her arm. When the pink haired girl regained her logic, she noticed how light the cockpit block of a TSF was. Because that was all she held in her clutch, the cockpit section plus an arm.

Yuuya's TSF exploded with blue, a spectacle Sharon never witnessed before. And even faster than the cloud of gas enclosing him, he charged forward, straight for Leon's Raptor. Indifferent about the rain of bullets shot in his direction, the Phase 3 speared beautifully for its target.

At a speed incomprehensible for a normal human, the 94 Second cleaved viciously using both halberds in hand. Before Leon had the chance to respond to anything, two clean cuts left his frame dismembered and annihilated beyond measure.

"Go back and help the survivors, nobody's dead."

"Wait, what? Didn't you say—"

"I said what he wanted to hear, better to have him hate me than miss me, I don't swing that way." In a time like this, with a situation like this, Sharon still chuckled at Yuuya's joke.

"Oh… really? That's it then? You scared me shitless." There weren't too much clever comebacks on Sharon's mind right now.

"This's it, we still cool?"

"Yeah… yeah, guess we still cool. You fucking kicked our shit but… Leon's still alive so… one question though, why did you do it? What happened to the twins?"

"…It's nothing you need to know, she's back with me now, that's all that matters."

"So you really did all this… just for a woman?" As unbelievable as things turned out, this mess smelled just like Yuuya to Sharon.

"I did everything for Cryska, don't question me."

"I won't, I won't. I just didn't take you for a romantic." It was Yuuya's turn to let out a giggle.

"You'll be surprised. Anyway, take good care of him for me. This time, we seriously won't meet again."

"Where you going now?"

"If not to jail, I think I got recruited by a pretty special spec-ops team." His message wasn't too hard to decrypt.

"Your new friends, what type of people are they?"

"Well, their boss is a total asshole, I do kinda like the company of this samurai chick though."

"Wow, cheating already, huh?"

"Isn't that more up your alley, Sharon? If Leon didn't like sloppy sec—" Now those were classic trigger words.

"DOOONNN'T YOU EVER FINISH THAT SENTENCE, DIPSHIT!"

"Right, right. Some jokes are worse than others, sorry." Yuuya apologized quickly to ease Sharon's wrath.

"Ahhh… haha, you really grown up a lot too, even more than when we last met you."

"Yeah, think I can feel it too this time."

"…We'll miss you, Yuuya. Everyone here will miss you dearly."

"Please… take good care of him, he shouldn't have to deal with me anymore." A bit saddening, but what Yuuya claimed was the wholehearted truth.

"What about your old Flight? They'll want to see you again."

"Naah, no they won't. I gotta go now, the plane just landed so… bye, I guess" His final sentence to Sharon went unfinished as the Shiranui drifted down to the ground, its burning blue flame slowly extinguishing.

"Goodbye, Yuuya… the Top Element won't be the same without you…" Holding her partner carefully in her arms, Sharon too flew away from the aftermath of Yuuya's love quest.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **06:25 AM**

"Ayyyyy, ha! Stupid shit go die." Two F-16s who didn't properly prepare themselves were impaled apart without mercy.

"—Takeru! We have cleared the immediate vicinity of all unfriendlies, you are safe to proceed with this extraction." Meiya updated me on a well-known fact.

"—oh, I see. Because I didn't know all the guys I took down were baddies, oopsy." I mocked her for unneeded information.

The coast was clear for the time being, their first wave of backup was wrecked once I entered the battlefield along with Meiya. The two of us paired together did good work indeed, but most kills for this operation had to go to Sumika and Kasumi, they were a totally different animal.

"—Archangel 4 to 1, we've taken multiple injuries. However the airfield is secured and the pickup just landed, it's safe to proceed with extraction." Class rep's team took hell of a beating, I was proud of them for sticking it through.

"—arc 1 roger, commencing exfil pronto." I shot Class rep a flirty wink which made her blush redder than a bucket of red dye on MS Paint.

"—Element P, your report?" P for Prafka and P for… picky? I didn't think that one through.

"—mAsTER! REmAiNiNg hoStilES nuMbEr iN YuKON…"

"— -EqualS ZerO." Together, the bunny girls reported their score of killing every single TSF left operational.

"Urrga… bringing Prafka back, I see. What about the guy Bridges let slip?"

"UnACCounTeD foR."

"Arc 1 copy. Your ETA?"

"OnE MinutE."

"Archangel 5 to 1, I have request for one additional package." As all of my team members gathered their surface fighters by the transport, Meiya radioed in an extra passenger.

"Who's your plus one?"

"1st Lt. Takamura of the Honour Guard, she will be under my injunction from here onwards."

"Damn it, Meiya. It's fine if she listens but things will get ugly if she tries something, got that?" It wasn't personal against Takamura, I just didn't like things not going according to plan.

"Of course, you have my gratitude, Takeru."

"I'll make you pay me back with your body, hurry and load her up." A single sigh was what I got out of that joke.

"Understood."

And so Meiya's Takemikazuchi crouched down next to the aircraft, a fortified suited Takamura hopped down and entered the cargo bay. She looked a little worn out, I bet was whatever she did together with Meiya was probably not for recreation purposes.

Before completely disappearing into the stomach of the shipper, Takamura stared intensely in the direction of my YF-23. She had an amusing expression waiting for me, it was… a worrying look, the kind a mother would shoot their child after being notified of their arrest. She pissed me off, getting looked down like that seriously pissed me off.

"…Meiya, keep a good leash on your new pet. Don't make me bite her back."

"Huh? What are you talking abou—"

"Just watch her and don't let things get messed up." A confused mien was shown to me, Meiya had no clue what I was on about.

"…Understood, Takeru." Nonetheless, she agreed lukewarmly.

"—Archangel 4 and 8, how's the damage?" Next, I asserted the surface fighter condition of our two injured soldiers.

"—Archangel 8, uuu… Miki is sorrrrry! My combat effectiveness is below thirty percent, I need external vector guidance for long range engagement and travel." Observing Tama's machine, getting the head taken off could do that to a TSF.

"—Arc 4, lost an arm, sixty-nine percent effectiveness." Class rep was mostly fine, a missing limb wouldn't hurt that much.

"You two are fine. Archangel 6 will give you guidance, Tama. But the worst is over, Yukon is cleared."

"Ahha, alright!"

"Haa… let's hurry and go fast, please." I was happy to approve their wishes.

"—ArchanGeL 2, arriVed."

"—ArchangeL 3, ArriveD." Gathering one after another, Sumika and Kasumi was back from slaughtering everyone they ran into.

 _That Prafka thing ain't fond of going away, huh?_

" _Just like the cloudy thingy, it's wearing off. I should be back to normal soon, this me is different from the talking me, Takeru-chan. Sorry for making it complicated._ " The mental message I received was sent by the sane Sumika, well, comparably sane.

"—no matter Arc 2, 3. Well done whopping the Ivans' asses, you girls did fantastic work." I complimented the duo over our comms. The two's TSFs concomitantly bowed down to me for that praise. Not gonna lie, the others were surely shooting me looks of judgement from somewhere.

"—Bridges, I think it's time for you to get off, Sestina too." Obviously, it was time for the lovers to reunite.

"—is… Cryska… here?" Alarmingly, our American friend asked.

"That's what a surprise is for, right? C'mon now, better be there to catch her." This was as close I came to admitting her safety as he was getting out of me.

Bridges exhaled once loudly, his face told me the guy had his share of work done by the end of this night. A few seconds after disconnecting the profile camera on his 94, Bridges opened up the cockpit and sent Sestina out before himself. Those two Eishis roped down to the ground, a bit too far away for me to recognize their facial sign.

"Hey, what if, just a what-if, okay? Sumika just opens up her cockpit and chuck out a dead body? That would be kinda messed up, right?" Finding this situation to be the most inappropriate place possible, I made the most inappropriate joke possible.

"Ahaha, my arm would be so far up your ass there'll be a new meaning to the phrase 'spoon-feed'." I wouldn't appreciate that, on the other hand, this was a first time someone had threatened me in a long while.

"Aha-Pfff! Jesus! I see, I see." To ease the tension, we shared a wild laugh for the joy of it.

Bridges and Inia stood peacefully right by the Berkut's feet, he had a relaxed smile and she demonstrated a more innocent one. The time for our grand reunion was nigh; we all knew it. Without being told, he understood the completion of our mission. Without being told, everyone could sense the added life booming on Sumika's laps.

Her pilot block ejected out. The Su-47 was mighty in its stance, a full moon shined astoundingly as it broke past the endless darkness to beam its ray down upon he who succeeded. With eyes of anticipation, Bridges finally witnessed the awakening of his sleeping beauty. A gorgeous figure casted a fine shadow behind him, the gust of wing lightly fluttered her smooth silver hair.

"Yuuya… it really is you…" The girl called out, her dried up tears came back to life just as she herself did.

"Yeah… I'm right here, Cryska." He replied to her, the words he was dying to deliver now finally reached the ear of his only partner.

Barchenowa held tightly to the descending rope, her hands still trembled at every sight of Bridges. By her feet, a tiny snowflake carried along by tonight's breeze landed gently; it started to snow, white sleet was coming down by the millions, covering out this blood-drenched earth.

"Yuuya… I… I came back…"

"Yeah… y-you did do that… wel-welcome back, Cryska." Emotions too powerful to be acted out channelled this pair of lovers, their gazes of affection missed repeatedly to meet each other.

"Cr-Crysskkkaa! Yooooou caaaame baaaack toooo ussssss!" Breaking their stroppy reconciliation using her sentimental hug, Sestina jumped her older sister thanks to pure joy. Her wet sockets released all the floodgates at once, endless salty droplets washed away any sorrow.

"Inia…! I really am alive… again. It's nice, it is… really nice to be back." Accepting her heartfelt embrace as a matter of course, Barchenowa hugged Sestina back. Both girls leaked tears of delight as the snow fell all around them.

"Yuuya, together!" Then the younger esper stretched out her arm, motioning for Bridges to be part of their touching welcome.

"Eh, me? That be kinda…" Logically, it would be uncomfortable to enter a cuddle meant for two.

"Yuuya… it's been a long time… let me… see you clearly." So Barchenowa too, she reached out, gesturing for Bridges to be part of their happiness.

Yukon was hit by a snowstorm that day, the already uncontrollable weather decided a sheet of ice suited Alaska the best. So the clouds complied with wind, temperature and sea, it bonded together to form many layers of condensed vapour high up in the air.

Through the altostratus, however, there was a hole broken in our atmosphere. It allow only one ray of moonlight to be reflected off the ground, a stream which also had to smash through the unnatural mist created from pure blackness. Eventually, its tremendous effort finally excelled for the light to reap the benefit.

A perfectly shaped circle of bright whiteness encompassed the trio of soldiers, their destiny had brought them to the end of a treacherous path. Even when surrounded by the inky fog of death, their light still gleamed vibrant across this land. It was a colour belonging to these three brave souls alone.

The endless night was their backdrop; the sparklingly silver was their stage. Here, the birthplace of a new colour; the colour of white darkness.

—

 **Shirogane Archangel 1. Flight A, Element A**

 **Sumika Archangel 2. Flight A, Element A**

 **Yuuya-Inia, Idar 1. Flight A, Element B**

 **Meiya Archangel 5. Flight A, Element B**

 **Sakaki Archangel 4. Flight B, Element C**

 **Mikoto Archangel 6. Flight B, Element C**

 **Ayamine Archangel 7. Flight B, Element C**

 **Kasumi Archangel 3. Flight B, Element D**

 **Tamase Archangel 8. Flight B, Element D**

—

 **Author's note**

Hooooly shiiit I'm finally done this arc. What? You hated it? Yeah, me too. (If you liked it, thank you.) From writing this, I realized I still have many problems when it comes to well, writing shit. This is my first time ever coming up with totally original content, (I still don't own the characters, don't forget.) so it's kinda like an experiment for me. Go easy, alright? Newbie writer here.

For reflection; problem one, I had too many plot elements going on at once. If I get confused from the plot, there's no hope for any regular reader. So much shit be going on and so much scene changes it's a bit crazy.

Problem two, there's too many boring fight scenes. I kinda fixed that though in the middle so it shouldn't be too much. Nobody like reading action, that's for anime or manga. I write dialogue and monologue, that's the main thing.

Problem three, this arc was too focused on the TE characters which isn't a good thing. You come here for Alternative, I should deliver Alternative, that's the deal. If you liked TE in general then it's not too bad but I still should focus on team Shirogane. Future stories hopefully won't be as heavy in these problems.

After this is almost immediately Sado, I don't wanna waste anymore time on OC. (original content) After Sado though, you'll all have to put up with shit I come up with. Because it'll be difficult to follow the VN plot anymore than now. I'll reveal more later.

It's also finals season for a student like me and that means it's getting busy as fuck around here, I kinda need a break from writing too. Don't be surprised if you don't see me for a month or two, I'll be back around summer break, that's a promise.

BETA done by chad001, remember that one time I bought you an elephant for your room.

You said, "Thanks."

I said, "Don't mention it."


	36. Forward unto dawn

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **6:29 AM**

 **Soviet Б-01, Airstrip**

'I sorta need to break these three up or we aren't even going anywhere.' While even my heartstrings got tugged a little by this emotional scene straight cut out from a movie, we were still fighting a war.

"—SensorS ArE CaptureD MultiplE InbounD ObjectiveS, MarkerS ArE HostilE BattalioN, CountinG ThirtY CraftS AnD RisinG." Must be the actual reinforcement from a nearby base, we wouldn't want to fight that.

 _Sumika, those Berkuts aren't coming with us, take care of it._

" _You mean like… 'dead' care?_ " Talk about being extreme.

 _No… just regular care, set them free._

" _Okay! I'll see to it!_ " That was easy.

"—umm, you three. I'm gonna ask you to continue your lovely-love somewhere else, preferably in that plane, cause we're bouncing the fuck outta here now." I hated breaking up a lover's moment as much as the next guy, although guess what I hated ever more? Getting busted by them UN popo for watching a soap opera.

"Ah, ah yes. Let's go Cryska, we can keep talking in the…" Bridges turned around and saw her, a smooth haired samurai watching the whole segment from start to finish.

"Ohhhh, riiight… Takamura was there in the cargo bay, this entire time… blame Meiya for this one, don't look at me like that."

"—Takeru! Why must the fault for Takamura's presence be placed on me!? I have done nothing to be ashamed for!" Of course, Meiya wouldn't understand the implication behind this.

"…Yui… you're coming along?"

"Er… yeah, I'm following Mitsurugi-sama's order." Man, could this be more awkward? Maybe if I did something to them…

Discomfort was the main substance that made up the air we breathed, even more so than oxygen itself. Bridges' stare on Takamura was perfectly reflected through her eyes, neither party felt easy with attending to the same location as the other. They would trade glimpses in a flash and just as quickly avoid the peek.

"Can we please fucking go?" Was my mic muted? Because none of these assholes moved.

"Yu— 1st Lt. Takamura. It is nice… seeing you here!" To everyone's surprise, Barchenowa took the first step in establishing a new friendship. She outstretched her open palm, meaning to shake hands with Takamura.

"Arr? Ah, yes, yes. It is my honour to meet you again, 2nd Lt. Barchenowa… welcome back…" Takamura darted her gaze panicky in every direction before finding her guts and settling on the pupils of her love rival, or perhaps it was love winner by this time.

Using their new-found resolve, two girls shook hands firmly. A gesture of acquaintance that was built over countless hours of encounter, hopefully this time the female Eishis could find it in their hearts to become good friends. Although this might be a bit easier for one compared to the other.

"Congratulations… it is your victory."

"Eh? What do you mean, First Lieutenant?" Like me, Barchenowa was just as confused by Takamura's words.

"We aren't enemies, our position is more complicated and difficult than that, right?" Still baffled, Bridges and I could only play the role of observers to whatever the girls discussed.

"That… I… I am unsure… even now, but my feelings… they are genuine, I want to believe that."

"Me too… however it can only be fate… that decided the outcome of our competition." Then they smiled. A knowing smile, an insider's smile which was really upsetting because I wanted that juicy rumour too!

"Yui, I'm glad you're coming with us."

"Yeah, I too have many… issues to solve, which cannot be done here." Taking his turn, Bridges too shook Takamura's hand and greeted her.

"Let's go then… we won't want to waste anymore time." Leading Barchenowa by her hands, Bridges was ushered further into the plane with Sestina clenching his suit and Takamura watching his back.

Two flashing lights rotated rhythmically in sync as Bridges set his scrutiny over the land, his old home which he could never return to again. The two deserters forwent their past for each other, a love born from rebellion was leaving its memories.

"—Bridges, you used up like your entire life-savings worth of luck. treasure it greatly, don't forget."

"—I know, I… I know."

And then nothing. The entrance sealed shut, Bridges was with the other three together. There was no bullshit coming to ruin our success, I would never allow such a joke.

"—Pickup 554, go for take-off."

"—Pickup 554, understood, engines spinning up." The four engines of the C-141 Starlifter responded to commands inputted by its pilots, a while later that aircraft was cruising away faster and faster to take to the skies.

"We're packing up too, people! Archangel 6 will guide Arc 8 and 7 can watch out for 4. The rest are on me, we're protecting the plane until it's out of Alaskan airspace."

"—copy!" Everyone was onboard with that idea.

 **06:33 AM**

 **Yukon Airspace**

"—contact front, readings indicate to be the A-01 9th Squadron, Valkyries."

"—Arc 1 got you, welcome back, Kasumi."

"Thank you, Takeru-san."

The smoke trailing from behind their TSFs was no more, about half a minute ago the black cloud disappeared and didn't make any attempt at recurrence. Sumika soon returned to normal and brought back her hyped self, just now I greeted Kasumi as she spoke for the first time.

"—A-01 STF 9th Squadron leader Valkyries 1 to 13th Squadron leader Archangel 1, do you copy?" Good-old Isumi's sweet voice echoed in my ears, it was nice seeing her and the Valkyries as a bunch of blue dots out in the distance.

"—receiving you loud and clear, Valkyries 1. Coming to clean up our mess?"

"Something like that, Shirogane. We're PSDing for XO Kouzuki. So this's all that's left then… your losses?" It looked like Isumi had a wrong idea about our condition.

"Zero, we came with nine crafts, leaving with nine."

"Stop joking about this, we need to bag any casualties as to not give you guys away."

"Oh, oh boy. I'm so giddy thinking about Hayase's reaction already, because it really is just the nine of us." I was sure her feedback would be priceless.

"No… no way! Serious!? Vice-Commander had your team attack Yukon with only a Squadron!?" Her camera froze up for a good dozen seconds, or at least that was what I thought happened; in reality, Isumi was too shocked to change her expression.

"Uh-huh, it was kinda fun. Not gonna lie."

"Urrrm… I refuse to believe you!" What was I dealing with here, a nine year old? Isumi shot me a discouraging look for her statement.

"Okay then, sure. Anything else I can help you with?" Wasn't keeping up with that topic any longer.

"Right, forward me a list of all units on base. If none of your people are lost, then we have to check their register for death." Her set of orders were quite specific.

"Sent. What else?"

"Here's the coordinates with the refuelling planes, same time as what you had on arrival." Fuel was very important for our survival.

"Got it, we done?"

"That's it, we'll clean up your mess and be back to Japan in another day or so."

"Cool, see you then, Isumi."

"You too, Shirogane. Be safe on your return trip."

We waved a little to the Valkyries and they did the same for us, the shut curtains for my team meant an entirely different thing for the A-01 veterans. Their fight was just beginning to heat up, not as a war fought with weapons but a war fought with brilliance, and that was Yuuko-sensei's job.

"—Meiya, you dealt with Takamura's TSF, right?" After crossing shoulders with the Valkyries, there was something else tailing them closely behind.

"—yes, it is as of now disabled."

"Then you wanna explain that Yellow Takemikazuchi to me?"

"Is that…? That machine must belong to Tsukuyomi." Because knowing whose it was solved all the problems I had.

"Ahaa, you're useless."

"Takeru! Do not mindlessly insult me without—"

"—Archangel 1 of A-01 STF to incoming IRG TSF Platoon; self-identification, if you don't mind." To add insult to injury, I ignored Meiya's pouty complaint and went straight to the source for a clear enlightenment.

A Flight of four Type-00s was led by an unusual yellow frame instead of the normal red associated with Tsukuyomi's rank, either a demotion got her after the coup or the empire was really low on red paint, there could only be one correct assumption.

"—is there a need to explain myself to you, Capt. Shirogane?" Salt, always overflowing with salt.

"I mean, pretty please, Mana-Mana-sama?" Still in her rosy suit, the colour of Tsukuyomi's Takemikazuchi seemed to be the only change for Meiya's maid, I had no idea how her machine adjustment was settled, but it didn't matter to me anyway.

"I am here as a massager for the Capital, do not speak to me anymore."

"Wait, wait! I have more question—" And the connection was terminated.

Damn, I really earned Tsukuyomi's loathing again, for some reason. She just couldn't make up her mind whether to like me or want to kill me into little pieces.

"Ahga, what a bitch. Okay, Arc 5, give it to me head-on." The truth could only now be revealed from Meiya's mouth.

"You see, Takeru. Tsukuyomi is here as a representative for the Imperial Royal Household during the upcoming meeting, I believe Aneue addressed her personally."

"Wha— huh? Meeting? What meeting?" Meiya was in procession of some information I had no access to.

"A short summoning of all Project PROMINENCE leaders regarding Alternative IV's acquisition of said project and all assets related to said project." This, I literally never heard before until now.

"Are you actually fucking me? -like, who else knows?" This was on a completely different level than being trolled by sensei.

"Hrrm, if memory serves me correctly: the projector overseer, UN Colonel Hartwick; Ministry of Defence's XFJ leader, Lt. Colonel Iwaya Eiji. As I mentioned before, Tsukuyomi will be representing the Shogunate and Her Highness."

"This many big-shots? Jeez, my god." Albeit I had no knowledge who half of those people were, they all sounded pretty high-ranking.

"I am not yet finished. The Soviet Union's Colonel General along with United Status' Secretary of Defence both will be attending via video transmission. At least that is what little information I am told."

"So in total we got the UN, IRG, IJA, you royalties, Russian military and US DoD all gathering for this one conference? I mean, then what was our base attack for?" I never imagined a day when Meiya was the one feeding me intel.

"If we do disregard the objective of Barchenowa's revival as a possible goal for this operation. I see this as Professor Kouzuki's method of a demonstration of her power; or not, ridding Yukon of its defensive forces must also lower the price of acquisition."

"Yeah… if that's what she's aiming for, then we got played real hard." It was too early to guess at Yuuko-sensei's evil plot for now, I still had this mission to finish.

"And even more, considering the person Professor Kouzuki is; she might just not care. Nonetheless, Takeru, we should complete our own assignment ASAP."

"Agreed, pretend this discussion never happened and don't let the others know. Also remind me to slap Yuuko-sensei with a big, fat stack of money once we're back." She deserved at least this much.

"Huhuhu, of course, Takeru." Meiya agreed easily.

"On that note, have you recent—" Another one of them beeping messages interrupted my sentence, the universe was against me talking at all times; this certainly seemed to be the case.

"—Archangel 1, this is Inia Sestina of Idar 1, do you copy?" To my agitated surprise, a calm and collected Sestina radioed me from the plane. She never sounded this unruffled, which meant there definitely was something wrong.

"—go for me, Idar 1. What's the problem?"

"I'm relaying my feed… this is not good, Capt. Takeru-chan." The time wasn't right for me to mind her strange use of my name.

"I have received." A little slide window popped up showing a live footage of whatever event was transpiring inside the cargo bay of our jet.

"…Yeah, yeah this is bad news." Within the dim corridor of the transportation, Sestina was staring directly at a figure five metres away from her.

"—YUUYA! WHY!? Did I ask for any of this!?" I heard a mournful scream muffled by tears through Sestina's microphone; its shouter was not a voice I recognized.

"—Please! You don't have to do this! Just let Cryska go!" Next, I noticed the unregistered passenger had Barchenowa hostage with a pistol to her temples. The lighting was not suited for making out either's expression, but intense breathing from both parties could be heard.

"IT'S NOT FAIR! All I wanted was just you, Yuuya! If you were so determined to run away, why did you come back?!" Bridges entered the setting to Sestina's right, a handgun pointing at the infiltrator.

"This is not the same! I came back for Cryska! I just wanted her to be safe!"

"So that's all you care about!? Just this Russian!? You don't give a shit about everyone you left behind?! Nothing for me?!"

Working with the terrible angle here, I could only conclude for the abductor to be female at around the same height as Bridges. Her voice was young and a bit heavy with accent, two pigtails swung violently as the confrontation escalated.

"This isn't about you, Yifei! We're just trying to leave!"

"DAMN IT ALL, YUUYA! The mission wasn't supposed to be like this! SHE KILLED MY ENTIRE TEAM!"

 **Yuuya Bridges**

 **06:35 AM**

"Listen to me, Yifei! You're high on 'go pills' or something you took earlier! Just calm down and we can talk this through!"

"I only shot up with morphine! And it was because of HER too!" On the left side of Yifei's waist, there was a bandaged wound due to a fresh injury. She would occasionally rub around the darkened spot, trying to ease the pain.

"Please stop it, Capt. Cui! There's no point in doing this anymore!" Yui attempted to solve the situation as well.

Fortified gloves griped the handle of a M9 tightly, fingers pressed right on the trigger and safety clicked off long ago. Yuuya didn't want to point a firearm at a valuable companion of his, however the situation raised gave him more than a good reason to do so.

He didn't know where Yifei came from; he didn't see how Cryska got taken hostage. Nothing made sense for the ex-2nd Lieutenant, it shouldn't be happening like this. Within the plane hold, Cryska said she wanted to check out what was behind the stacked crates so Yuuya let her; the accident took place afterwards.

"You're blowing this all out of proportion, Yifei! Cryska didn't kill anyone on your team!"

"Please… believe him, Capt. Cui. I only recently woke up fro—"

"You SHUT UP!" Waving her arm down, Yifei slammed the gun-stock down for Cryska's head. If she didn't pull back at the last second, the trigger on Yuuya's pistol might've been pulled.

"Even if the 47 wasn't hers, it was she who caused all this mess! Why did you come back, Yuuya!?" The old grief still clung to Yifei's features; she pressed the barrel hard against Cryska's head, disinclined to take Yuuya's justification as the truth.

"Yifei, I know you to be a reasonable person. I'm telling you right now that nobody is dead, we came in and out with a zero casualty rate for us and the people of Yukon. If you don't trust me then just check the surveillance footage from the Berkut yourself." Judgment and rational, tools Yuuya could use for a safe solution.

"What're you…?" That proclamation soothed Yifei's mood, she blinked a few times to think realistically again.

"—Capt. Shirogane, you seeing this?" Yuuya phoned the Archangel leader over their data-link.

"—through Sestina's suit camera, link me to yours." The demand was said to Yuuya by his earpiece. He knowingly clicked a few buttons on his wrist to forward his feed.

"Okay, patching through."

"Is that the ringleader of your team!?" Excluded from his comms, Yifei became anxious when Yuuya spoke with Shirogane.

"Bridges, I'm getting you Archangel 2's recording now, it's fresh off the files and even I haven't seen it yet. Don't spoil, okay?"

"Not now, Captain. You sure nobody got gutted, right?" The time for jokes had to be postponed; Yuuya had more urgent matters to deal with.

"Yeah, negative on killed hostile pilots. Nobody should be suffering from fatal wounds." Shirogane vowed for the wellbeing of all the soldiers they faced.

"Yifei, can your suit still receive?"

"Y-yeah! I brought my control with me from the J-10!"

"I'm sending you the video feed now. Just watch it for yourself, okay? Please trust me and don't hurt Cryska." Slowly and calmly, Yuuya clicked a few buttons on his suit to transfer the data that should disprove Yifei's claim.

While hesitant, she received his message and begun watching the video, both her hands still tightly around Cryska's wrists and the pistol respectively. Yuuya said nothing for the entire duration of the screening as the Chinese girl focused to study what she viewed.

"A vertical cut down the shoulder joints…that's way different from what I saw! She went for the cockpits! All three fucking times!" Bloodshot eyes met confused and tense pupils; Yuuya again stabilized his handgun and tightened his trigger finger.

"I don't know what you saw, okay!? But it wasn't the truth! Killing people here would defeat our whole purpose! So please! Just let Cryska go! You're hurting her way too much!" Yuuya was justifiably low on patience; losing Cryska here under this set of circumstances will never be permitted in his books.

"Agguaa… it's always someone else, it's always for somebody else when it comes to you, Yuuya. I-I can't understand this, why did you do it? WHY!?" Swinging around her pistol repeatedly had caused a drain on Yifei's stamina, the PLA girl sighed exasperatingly.

"Yifei… stop it, just stop it." So Yuuya also worked with her attitude, his voice cautious but calm.

"Agra, whatever! I'm in no mood for this anymore. Catch, stupid!" Yifei's arm pushed harshly, Cryska went flying away from her hold and into Yuuya's chest.

"Cryska, you okay?" Obviously, Yuuya would be the first to care for her.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. The safety on her gun was still on, she had no intention of shooting me." Hearing that, Yuuya felt a bit guilty for the state his sidearm was in; he was ready to fire if he must.

"I'm tired, Yuuya… I'm really just done with this. Why did you choose her? Even if it can't be me, then why not Takamura over there? She clearly has the hots for you and it's not like you're blind to that, why her, Yuuya?"

He wasn't prepared for this, not under such conditions. Yuuya tried his best until now to hide his decision of the heart from the prying eyes of others. Most of Shirogane's team didn't care too much for his reason and the Captain even less so. However Yifei did care, and she wasn't about beating around the bush.

"Ca-ca-c-c-CAPTAIN! D-d-don't be saying THAT! I-I'm merely ju-just a—!" Yui instantly flustered red to no end, her shy side came out easily to get the better of her.

In face of this dilemma, Yuuya reminded himself how silence says a thousand words.

"Yeah, yeah, keep being embarrassed, Takamura. I don't really care for your view anyway. That whole time you just watched, what a nice friend you are."

"You—!"

"2nd Lt. Barchenowa, what's your opinion on this? We know he sees you as a romantic interest, you're feeling like a winner right now?" Her pistol was now being used as a pointer by Yifei's crazy hand motions, Yuuya stayed quiet to keep the fire away from him now that the real danger had passed.

"I don't really know this too well, Capt. Cui. What I feel towards Yuuya is hard to explain. This feeling is passed onto me from Inia, I can't truly tell whether this belongs to me or not."

"Oh, that's just great. Yuuya, if I ever need you, will you go AWOL for me?" Completely worn out by her endless night of fighting, Yifei became too uncaring about the image she presented to others.

"Err… yeah, I'll do that for you."

"Really? You don't sound like you're willing." She caught on, but not for long.

Yuuya was too far ahead to be uncertain now. He did this, created an entire war for the sake of one woman, that was what he did. And seeing the chaos he had left behind only firmed his resolve, Yuuya wasn't regretful about his actions. He did what he knew was what he had wanted more than anything else.

"Yes, if you ever need my help, Yifei. I'll be there for you. I realize I love Cryska because she is who she is, there's nothing to be done to change that. You're my friend, Yifei. I do value you as such."

So Yifei sighed again, out of words to resort for something so pointless in the first place. She holstered her sidearm and casually swiped back her hair like nothing happened. To this Chinese girl, perhaps nothing of their discussion was really worthy of bewilderment.

"Hear that, Takamura? What do you think?"

"Ehh? Err… humph! I have since long prepared for such an outcome, therefore I cannot say this conclusion is outside expectation." To Yuuya's eyes, Yui was ready to face this ages before his return.

"So that leads to you being the ultimate winner, 2nd Lt. Barchenowa. Congratulations." In semi-mockery, Yifei clapped for her opponent.

"Ah, thank you, Captain." As oblivious as ever, Cryska saluted sincerely.

"Now that's over, I want some stories. Tell me what happened, Yuuya. Absolutely everything."

"Alright, we'll tell you what happened. Just don't be too surprised, okay?"

—

"Really?! You went all that length, just for her!?" By now, Yuuya was used to seeing that reaction when he retells the tale of his venture.

"You see! Yuuya is very dedicated to Cryska! Don't be trying to steal him from now on!" A new voice called out for Yifei's surrender, Inia who didn't speak a word this entire time finally let her thoughts be known.

"I-In-Inia! Don't say such embarrassing things! It's… it's not good! We're only starting out!" Clearly shy about their relationship, Cryska blabbed away more unnecessary gossip.

"Ahaaa… it's hopeles—"

"YUUYA you STUPID IDIOOOOT!" Fast as lighting, the American got slapped comically across the face and flew to the other end of the hold. There was still some fire left in Yifei, it would appear.

"Yuuya! Are you okay?!" That was a hit deserving of Inia's attention which he just took.

"Arruuugga… I'll live."

"Okay then!" Nobody ever said her attention span was long.

Finally, calmed Yifei down from her rampage, the band of pilots from around the world sat in a row on the C-141's branches. Yuuya succeeded in his mission, now they were a ride home away from savouring the hard-fought victory.

"2nd Lt. Barchenowa, I'll only say this once, okay? Sorry… for taking you hostage earlier." This marked the start of a new conversation and relation.

"Ah, it's nothing to worry about, Capt. Cui."

"No, I shoved a gun in your face because I was… and still am jealous. Now that this stupid competition is over, will you see me as a contender?"

He glanced from afar at the four ladies sitting side-by-side, unwinding after everything that taken place. Yifei was slowly standing up, her face shadowed by uncertainty and guilt. Cryska was the first one to appreciate her intention, thus she reached out first, a hand offering friendship. Still timid, Yui also joined in to help her overcome her earlier mistakes.

"—Bridges, you know the Chinese girl?" It appeared Shirogane never left the comms.

"—yeah, but don't worry, she's fine now. We won't have a problem, trust me."

"Arr, I'd rather just shoot her and be done with it but I'll leave her alive for you, Bridges. There're some safety measures we have to take though." Whatever Shirogane wanted as insurance, it wouldn't be any worse than killing Yifei.

"What do you want?"

"Get her to strip first." Yuuya ate his thoughts entirely just then.

"Wait, what!? H-hold on a sec here… WHAT!?"

"She's still a security hazard as long as she's in that suit. Get her out of it right away Bridges, I'm not taking that risk." From Shirogane's voice, Yuuya recognized he wasn't joking around for the laughs.

"Is there any other alternatives?"

"I dunno, man, how does a full metal jacket penetrating her brain sounds? I'm sure I can manage that too." A better solution probably existed somewhere in the universe, this wasn't it.

"You motherfucking dick. Fine, I'll get her to do that."

"There should be some blankets lying around in there, take off everything she's wearing and toss it out. I'll take your words for it when she's done, don't lie to me." Vagueness made up of Yuuya's immediate future, but this young man had to carry out his questionable order.

He was just lucky to see the whole event in process from a minute prior. Yifei's hand griped Cryska's tightly with Yui placing her own on top of theirs. He hoped that everything in the past could just be water under the bridges, with their new future being the primary goal to work for.

"Yuuya, what's wrong?" Yui sensed his uneasiness when Yuuya walked back, his steps missing its normal pace.

"Emm, the guy in charge wants Yifei to change out of her fortified suit."

"Does he? Is there clothes or anything lying around?" Her chilled attitude was making Yuuya sweat nervously.

"T-there should be a bl-blanket here somewhere."

"Ah, this must be it, Captain." Yui delivered a sheet Shirogane had mentioned.

"Xièxiè, princess. By the way, are there some bandages you can find? I should rewrap this wound just in case." A more relaxed Yifei was good; however, a too relaxed Yifei was not.

Yuuya had a good hunch on what was about to transpire, still Yifei moved her hands and body faster than he could react. Her shoulder pads came undone in seconds, swiftly followed by the air-sealed collar around her neck. It was about to happen; he knew, but he also knew he couldn't look away in time.

"Awawa… F-fi-First Li-l-Lieutenant! Th-that's indecent!" Yui complained weakly.

"Ahaaa…! The bleeding stopped, thank god. Ouch, my wound could get infected though." Then her suit dropped completely down to her ankles. Yifei cared not in the slightest how her naked body was observable by everyone surrounding her.

As for her injury, the cut was large, fortunately it wasn't too deep to be considered seriously harmful. Yuuya swore that was all he saw.

"Oh? Yuuuuuya~! What do you think, huuuh? I'm still developing but this looks promising~ right~?" He tried his best, he tried so hard too.

"Yuuya, noooo! Don't look-don't look, don't loooook!" He paid for his hesitation with a brutal slap, this time sent with love by Inia.

Fun, that was a precious thing; an exquisite sentimentality of their time. Yuuya only enjoyed it now, during a time after suffering. He viewed pleasantly, the girls messing around with each other and him. Cryska on the brink of taking her own suit off as Yifei increased her challenge.

"C-Capt. CUI! Stoooop thiiis! Ce-Cease this lewdness at once!"

"Ha-ha-ha-ha! This's exactly why you couldn't win, princess! I'm not ashamed of myself!"

"Kapitan! Please use this blanket! You'll get sick!"

"Yuuuuya~! C'mooon~! You gotta have an opinion!" The matter of fact was that he did have an opinion, although it wasn't for sharing purposes.

"Tch… it isn't not like you've done anything with Yuuya while naked anyway, Cryska still wins, understand that! She's the first one!" Inia, the young rebel stood up to Yifei's nonsense.

"Oh god, please no." There might be a little bit of unnecessary detail added in.

"Yuuya… Yuuya? What're you running away? There's nowhere to go you know? So come back, come back now! You can't run! YOU CAN'T JUST RUN FROM ME!"

This was the joy of life, this was what he fought for.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **International airspace**

"—no, no, no! Listen, okay!? So it goes like this: you have a wolf, a chicken and a bag of grain, you're taking them across a river in a small boat, that shitty boat can only carry two things at once so you and another item only. If left alone, wolf will eat chicken and chicken will eat grain."

"—what happens if something gets eaten?" A highly intelligent question from our genius thinker, Mikoto.

"You go into a cardiac arrest and die from shock of having the stuff eaten, sound good?"

"Oh… ooooh, okay." Mikoto nodded eagerly, waiting for me to continue.

"The wolf won't mess with the grain and nobody will go anywhere. Problem here is how to cross the river the fastest and not lose anything, other questions?"

"Can the grain row the boat though?" Another amazing display of IQ came from Ayamine.

"Don't talk to me, anymore questions?" This time there was only pure silence left.

"Okay, think about this and come back later. It took me around two minutes when I heard it first, still surprised that none of you know this riddle but whatever works."

Our casual fly over the ocean was in dire need of some entertainment. Luckily, I was there to provide the best and the most fun possible for our band of exhausted Eishis. Same as when we came, the endless sea had nothing in store for laughs, making mind puzzles a good time-killer.

" _Who do you think will get it first, Takeru-chan?_ " Sumika esp-ed me since she already solved this riddle years back.

 _Probably Meiya or Class rep, logical problem solving is a bit stronger in them._

"—you remember that time when Kasumi-chan tried this?" Switching to encrypted comms made no alteration to our talk.

"—she had it down in seconds, brainpower be high with that girl."

"Yeah, how long ago was that?" Nostalgia struck me hard on this one.

"I'm thinking about eight years ago, we're really getting old. Actually, how long have we been doing this now, Sumika?"

Time, as a concept really failed on keeping me in touch with reality. Months turned into years and then decades. Seriously thinking about this sort of subjects were only a burden on my brain.

"I can't really remember either, maybe about thirty… forty years for me?" Smiling happily as ever, Sumika replied to me.

"…Damn, it must be really easy to just live and fight until you die, huh? Not worrying about saving the world and all that crap." Like so many lives around me, a redo-button was never there.

"But they don't get second chances, Takeru-chan. Without your interference, everything happens the exact same every time." Which was true, I personally tested to see what happens if I do nothing. In conclusion, world goes boom all day.

"See, it's times like this when I wish I had a kill-counter on you."

"Eh? What would that do?"

"You know, because I kill you every time we bring back the 00 unit… does that make sense, stupid?"

"Heeey! You don't have to be so mean allll the time, Takeru-chan! I also kinda forget the brain-me dies when this me gets working… so that means I'm dead… but not dead…?" Nice, already confused.

"Yeah, it's like a normal thing now. Sorry for killing you, by the way."

"Aye, that's fine. Everybody is just a certain personality that accumulated a unique set of memories over their course of life. So I don't think of myself as dead at all!" There probably was a movie with a plot like that, couldn't remember it at the moment though.

"Good, because I won't feel bad about putting down your dumbass."

"EEEEE!"

"—Takeru! I believe I have concluded to a correct answer—"

"—Capt. Takeru, I think I got it as well." My prediction was right on the money, Meiya and Class rep were only seconds apart on their calls.

"Allllright, let your grand master drop some knowledge down upon you."

—

"—so it's all finally over now, I kinda wish we had more to spend here!"

"—sure you do, we didn't bring back souvenirs. Do you think Bridges and the rest will have better days now?" An unknown amount of time later, Sumika started a new discussion with me.

"Erm… yes! Cryska-chan is alive, after all! You saved them, Takeru-chan! You did a good thing!" Deep in me, maybe I was hoping for those words.

"Yeah… did do that too. I gambled hard on this one, but now that we won, Yuuko-sensei had better deliver the goods. Bridges also better work his ass off from now on, XFJ and all."

"I'm sure they'll do fine!" It wasn't my place to plan out their future, however whatever path they would pick was greatly limited by me.

"Thinking about it though, I should have killed that Chinese girl. She's still a liability." The risk of bringing along Takamura was high enough; I didn't even know that one.

"Takeru-chan, bad! Don't be killing people for no good reason!" How ironic for her to be the one lecturing me on morals.

"You were so planning on putting them down during that Prafka fight, don't think I wasn't there."

"And that's why I hacked their system! It was like killing them but not really killing them!" To be absolutely fair, Sumika showed good moderation as to not actually bleed anyone dry.

"Don't you kill people on a regular basis? Like every other loop you put down dudes during the 12/5. Also, that time when we fought the EU with your Susanoo, you obliterated Britain in two days. Just like 'peeeeeew!' and they dead." It was just constant particle cannon spam, poor Lads had no hope.

"We were at war with them at that time! It wasn't my fault!" Honestly, that one couldn't be counted against her. We all had our own orders, people should learn not to mess with Alternative IV.

"Well, hopefully it doesn't turn into that again. Date for Sado isn't changing and this loop is looking more and more familiar to some other ones where we went full-blown World War III."

"Arr, please don't let that happen." Throwing G-Bombs are each other while the BETA was on our front-door step wasn't humanity's brightest moment.

"Yep, yep. I'll make it work, somehow. Let's get done with this first though, I wanna go home."

"Ahehe, me toooo! I wanna take a long shower and sleep for hours!"

"That reminded me, I haven't slept around in a while. Once we're back I want you to blow me." I was sure being active was good for my body.

"You mean like breathing on…? AAAAWWWAAA! NO! NONONONO!" What an overreaction, I wasn't even asking for a homerun.

"But… you do that all the time though?"

"STILL NO! It's because you always force me into perverted stuff!"

"What? A wise-man once said 'one cannot rape the willing'. Are you disagreeing with me?"

"ABSOULTELY! I'm okay with doing all that lewd things with you but it's still rape!" Just shoot me, like right now.

"Fucking… shut the fuck up, you don't make sense. The minute sensei gets home I'll ask her for some computer aphrodisiac, this way you'll be more truthful with yourself! Muahahaha!"

"Aaahh! aAAAAAH! That's rape! You pervert! DEGENERATE!" What a big word.

"I ain't dealing with you right now. —Arc lead to Ayamine, serve me a third base once we get back." Since Sumika was useless as ever, I went to someone more cooperative instead.

"—waaaa? I thought we're going all the way."

"Oh, yeah. Nevermind, Sumika. You're fired, I see you naked again I'll throw you into a pit of octopuses." Inside joke, inside joke. As in something being inside something else.

I'm so good at this comedy.

"Agggrra… I'CAN'T BELIEVE YOU JOKE ABOUT THAT! TAAAKKKKERRRRUUU-CCHHAAAN!"

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **December 21, 2001**

 **Alaska, Yukon Base conference room**

"Well, I believe this is called a circle-jerk, gentlemen. Can we please just conduct business?"

"Dr. Kouzuki holds a good point, we're quite unproductive with this endless bickering." Even a tiny gathering of world leaders ended up with problems like this, not like anyone expected otherwise.

"How nice of you to agree, Mr. Secretary."

"Of course, I prefer to be fruitful as well."

A huge round table and single sofas straight out of fiction was accessible for Yuuko to sit in as she presented her points to many of the most influential people on the planet. Standing behind her was Suzumiya Haruka, her personal assistant when it came to receiving and sending messages to the outside team.

Looking over the chairs, only a fraction of them happened to be filled. There was 1st Lt. Tsukuyomi Mana, sitting in for the Shogun. Lt. Colonel Iwaya Eiji on behalf of the Imperial Army's Ministry of Defence. And a few other faces she wasn't too interested by.

On video were a few more hot-shots, like America's Secretary of Defence and Russian's Colonel General. Regular folks, all of them.

"But no matter how persuasive you are, Doctor. We cannot so simply agree to—"

"Representing the Japanese Imperial Shogunate, Her Highness gives consent to this transaction. I shall no longer be involved in this conversation, excuse me." Half an hour of pointless debating pushed the IRG First Lieutenant over the edge, Tsukuyomi stated her view flawlessly and left all too quickly.

"Kouzuki Hakase (Professor), all matters belonging to the Imperial Honour Guard are to be dealt with by us, do not have your team obstruct it." Calling Yuuko out in Japanese, Tsukuyomi muttered her words.

"I know, I know. Don't be such a stiff."

"Tsk, I am not complaining about my order, however this is a waste of my time." Still refusing to speak the international language, the First Lieutenant was upset with being called to their meeting as she exited through the door.

"Oh… wow. Disrespected, how do you feel about that, Comrade… bold person?" This was a literal translation of adding insult to injury.

"…It is… Lt. Colonel Budomir… Rogofsky… Dr. Kouzuki…!" The pale Russian man held back his anger to the extremes as to not disgrace himself.

Yuuko wandered to herself as why this person was invited to their meeting in the first place. This assembly was for the conference of a matter completely unrelated to him.

"That's cool, I guess. So you still won't agree to our deal, Comrade Lt. Colonel?"

"NO!… This absurd threat is made to shed a bad light on us! The Alaska Military District of Soviet Army!"

"Uh… hello? If going around making espers isn't bad enough than how about bombing your own base for the Imperial's EML? Or maybe you want the actual communication call to be put on a playback loop?" Faking her resignation, Yuuko raised her hand like that popular poster of watching out for a badass.

"What!? Are you accusing me of such traitorous act!?"

"You heard like… none of what I just said, didn't you? I seriously just told you, like five seconds ago that I have evidence for your involvement during the Ц-04 Frontline Supply Base Incident when the bombers destroyed half of whatever battalion you had there."

"RIDICULOUS! I have neve—"

"Not. Another. Word. Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." Someone from the Russian side shut up Lt. Col. Rogofsky for good.

"Colonel General… yes, sir." Transmitting his view through a video camera, Yuuko noted another Russian guy stepping in to stop the constant bitching.

"Alright, that went well. Disregarding whether Lieutenant Colonel here actually did the bad stuff, I'm just asking for a base here. Can we please cooperate? How much you want?"

"Dr. Kouzuki, may I suggest you behave more fitting for your position? You are clearly ridiculing the soldiers of our Motherland." Upset with her, the Col. General warned the Japanese professor.

"Haa… let's be real here, what I want is Yukon Base and all of its related provision. So that's PROMINENCE, which is in the ground; all militarized units, which are also in the ground; the Soviet armed forces, which happens to be pretty much wiped out and the infantry… can't forget the infantry that's almost nonexistent."

"All while realizing Yukon Base just suffered an attack of unknown nature, with the perpetrators destroying most of its armed forces; a team of criminals who you willingly allowed to escape." The General said again. This was during the aftermath of another Yukon attack, Yuuko remembered.

"Hey, I was with Lt. Col. Iwaya in a freaking jet, what you want me to do? Kamikaze them to death?"

"You also had a team for security."

"Yeah, a team of nine! Those people demolished Yukon's… what, over a hundred TSFs with no losses? You honestly wanted me to take them on?" Yuuko made her stand firm enough for the Soviet General to back down.

"Anyway, gentlemen. To get Yukon, I need your permissions. And to dangle a carrot before you all, Alternative IV just set a date for our offense against the 21st Objective, Sadogashima Hive. With help from the Imperial Army and Far East Defence Force, we're looking to capture the Hive using a new super weapon."

Yuuko ended her sentence sweetly, shooting a playful wink at the US Secretary. All was going just according to plan so far, she thought to herself. Alternative was now officially too big to fail.

"I see, it's hard to believe you got it working, Professor. Personally, I'm quite impressed."

"Why, thank you, Mr. Secretary. Couldn't do it without your help." Sharing an insider's smile, only the Soviet soldier was left out of the fun.

"What is this super weapon you're hinting at, Doctor?" So he asked.

"Oh, it's a big gun."

"A very big gun, actually. Very, very big indeed." It was this moment that Yuuko became quite fond of the American DOD leader.

"And you know what? Alternative IV is inviting you Soviets to be part of its first observers; if you agree to giving me Yukon, that is."

"I don't understand, Doctor. Why do you wish to acquire Yukon Base so unbendingly? Is there something here of value to you?"

"Ahh…why do I want Yukon now…? Humm… I just like to whore, how about that?" It was actually not too far from the truth.

"…This is very straining on me mentally… Doctor, I'm not as young and ferocious as someone like you." The Soviet said, taking off his glasses and rubbing his nose bridge.

"I don't know how I can convince you, Col. General. Russian is infected by an endless sea of BETA, years after years innocent lives are lost because of it. I want to help you take back your home, General. I want to help the world take back our home, and I do have the power to do that." To herself, Yuuko believed it to be the full truth of her project.

"Very well! Risk is a part of life, I sincerely hope you do not fail me, Dr. Kouzuki."

"I would never."

"The Soviet Union agrees to this transaction." Finally, another approval was recorded on tape forever.

"Well, I got a game of golf to finish here, Professor. The United States federal government also agrees to this transaction—" Surprisingly fast, way too fast.

"On some conditions which we shall discuss at a more suitable time. Is that alright with you, Brigadier General Preston?"

"Of course, Sir. I do not have an objection." The US Army commander in charge of Yukon answered back.

"Ahaha… never change, you people. Alright, who else do I need permission from?"

"While I'm sure there's not much for me to declare, the Imperial Ministry of Technology also agrees, Professor Kouzuki." Lt. Col. Iwaya didn't really attend the meeting with a choice from the beginning, he more or less tagged along to oversee the reestablishment of XFJ.

"Appreciate it, Lieutenant Colonel."

"As the UN commander of Project PROMINCE, my support is not necessary, is it?" Another Caucasian man across the desk from Yuuko spoke up.

"Oh, yeah. Apologize for that, Col. Hartwick. Don't worry, you'll be paid in full."

"That is… not my concern, but it is good to know, Professor." Sighing calmly, the project leader nodded to Yuuko.

"Still, coming to Yukon Base during an attack was most unfortunate, Professor. Or maybe I should say brave?"

"I'm just happy they let me in, didn't shoot us or anything." On came the poker face, or else she wouldn't be able to control her laughter.

"Indeed, for a mere Squadron to do what the RLF failed a few months back. Whoever the invaders are, we must do everything in our power to hunt them down before another attack happens." Some of the Yukon commanders started talking amongst themselves.

"I currently have my team searching for survivors in the wreckage, the report of no casualties doesn't seem to be a lie." And it had better not be if Shirogane wanted his bonus.

"Thank you for your effort, Professor. This is a new low for Yukon, no offence."

"Vice-Commander Kouzuki, a call on line two from the Valkyries. It's Isumi, ma'am." Suzumiya, who was quiet until now whispered her message into Yuuko's ear.

"Good, I'll have a listen." Yuuko turned on her earpiece and heard a speaker shorty after static.

"—Vice-Commander Kouzuki, we have an update for you."

"—Isumi, go ahead."

"Ma'am, all Eishis who have reported for duty within the last twenty-four hours are secured. Many suffer from minor injuries with a few bone fractures, triage tags up to yellow only." That was the news she anxiously waited for.

"I see, good work on that."

"A question, Professor; was Shirogane's team really the only ones assigned this mission?" Isumi's curiosity peaked its head rarely, scarcely enough for the Vice-Commander to satisfy it.

"Yeah, it is. Only nine units and ten Eishis… I know, they took down an entire base worth of TSFs."

"…That is all, ma'am. We'll be on standby."

"No need, go take your break once things have calmed down." Yuuko gave her Captain the permission to rest.

"Roger that."

"Oh, another thing, gentlemen. There are no major injuries among any of the pilots defending Yukon today." Suddenly cutting their conversation off, Yuuko went in with her newly acknowledged news.

"Is that so? I can't help but admit to the incredible skill of the invaders then. Whatever their objectives were, they achieved it with zero casualties on both sides." That was just too perfect of a setup from the UN Colonel.

"And just a FYI, the intruder team also belongs to me. Alternative IV's A-01 Task Force, they're pretty good. And now I only have to pay for property damage, don't sue me though, this's my base now. " As fashionable as humanly possible, Yuuko made it rain by throwing her documents into the air before heading out the front door.

Not a single fuck was given that night.

—

"Hum! Maj. Sandek, how nice it is to meet you here."

"Please, Dr. Kouzuki, my UN rank is more than enough."

"That won't do, Major. This is about your Total Eclipse Plan, you see. We've lots of things to talk about, and I don't have time to beat around the bushes over here. The point is; I think Alternative IV has got more than what you need for it to succeed."

"…Then follow me, we'll go somewhere more appropriate for this discussion."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **JST, UTC+9, 18:45 PM**

 **Yokohama Base, Hangar**

"Who's gonna jerk me off!?" Shouting at the top of my lungs, there wasn't anything else to say.

"I thought I am." Ayamine jumped at the opportunity to get laid like we promised.

"…Do we have any contenders?" The more the merrier.

"Takeru-san, I want in too." There was Kasumi, baiting me with her loli body after a prolonged operation, herself sweaty but not too sweaty. I was absolutely planning on biting, no doubt about that.

"Do you earnestly have no shame, Takeru!? Announcing your night activity like this is uncalled for!" Puffing her cheeks cutely, Meiya pointed at me as she roped down from her Type-00.

"Owwoo, you jealous, Meiya? I'm open to a 4P, how about you?" That was a call for instant blush from Meiya, she flinched from the pure shock of my invitation.

"Wh-whhaat?! Bu-bu-but I-I have other matters t-t-to attend to—"

"Mitsurugi… chances aren't free." Ayamine cut in to add her inducement.

"We welcome you, Meiya-san." So did Kasumi when she grabbed the purple-haired girl by her hands.

"Ahh… Mitsurugi, this's your first time?" Said Class rep sceptically, she was investigating a case she had no business looking at.

"Errm… err… aahh… perhaps?" That totally will cure the curiosity of everyone here.

"Nice, that was smooth… just like your trimmed bush, sweet girl you." I honestly answered for Meiya.

"AHHa— y-y-yooou—!" Speechless was her current state. Meiya straight out crashed her head into my chest, resembling a planking posture and hiding her feature from view.

"Alright, here's what we're gonna do. We're all showering first, then eating, then I'm leaving for the night. Y'all are free to fuck around after that, got it?!"

"Takeru, I don't think I need to remind you but… take responsibility for her, okay?" Class rep sighed in resignation, I was probably long far gone in her eyes.

"How mature of you, mother. Good tips."

"Haa… Tamase, Yoroi, let's just go and leave them alone for now… I need to take a bath, a really long one." Tactical retreat wasn't a bad plan.

"Well, bye-bye, Takeru-san!"

"See you later, Takeru!"

"You people… do make sure you actually rest, alright?" So left the three touched maidens, soon they shall all belong to me. Sooooon.

"We'll use sensei's bedroom since ours are only a single bunk, don't worry, she wouldn't mind." Yes, I was sure. Yuuko-sensei wouldn't mind, because she wouldn't know.

The others were a bit reluctant, but my dominating demeanor wasn't a good front to argue against. Altogether, we left our machines and headed for the barracks. Meiya, Ayamine, Kasumi and I along with Sumika in toll went off separately for a quick shower before changing out of our suits.

—

"Hey, Sumika, where you going?" As the last person to congregate outside my room appeared, she deviated from our set course and instead went in a different direction.

"Huh? I said I'm not doing it now, right?"

"That was for real? You almost never miss out on team plays."

"Taaa-keeee-ruuu-chan! Doooon't call it something like that!" Shying her face with bright red, Sumika yelled like she always does.

"Then you're just gonna do nothing?"

"I have to recalibrate Cryska-chan, or else her cancer could come back." Thinking back to it, that was something Sandek told me to do when we watched Sumika hammering out the Chinese like good buddies.

Speaking of the past, our guests from Yukon should be resting in their rooms by now. Expect for the poor PLA chick who got thrown into a detention cell, she wouldn't be having the best first-impression of Yokohama for anytime in the future. At least I made sure the bed wasn't creeping with cockroaches.

"The Russian? What cha doing to her?" What a weird accent Ayamine used.

"Errr, it's complicated." Finding a good answer for her was proven to be difficult without spilling all the beans.

"Please take care of Cryska, Sumika-san."

"Of course! She's such a good girl! Unlike Takeru-chan, you idiooot!" Affront of the year right here, I needed some serious ice.

"Man, got me. Can confirm, am not a good girl." Sumika wasn't so kind to give me a reaction for my comeback.

"Well, have fun, everyone! I have some stuff to work out! And Takeru-chan! Don't bully them too much, you hear me!?"

"See ya stupid, just leave." It was a well-deserved punch in the face I dodged.

"Good luck on whatever tasks you must accomplish, Sumika."

"We'll gank him together next time, Kagami."

"Please take care of Cryska, Sumika-san."

"Kay-kay! Byyye everyone!" And so my party underwent a minus one.

 **Hayase Mitsuki**

 **AKDT, UTC-8, 10:32AM**

 **Yukon Base, main UN structure**

"Do you guys have a PX here? Also, do they serve morning meals?"

"Sure, yeah. Go down this hall and head for the left." Mitsuki was assisted by a short dark-skinned Eishi who she recovered from the forest a few hours back.

"Thanks for that." She commented before catching up to the rest of her friends.

"So that's exactly what he said; 'if you do wanna die, just don't die!" Munakata was telling a funny tale of sorts when Mitsuki arrived.

"Yeah… he's an asshole, I'll say it." Isumi sounded upset.

"What we talking about here?"

"What Capt. Shirogane said last time during our training, two days before their sortie." Isumi filled her in on the missing segments.

"Urrr, that Shirogane… once we get back, I'm definitely kicking his freaking fat-ass!"

"You really think so? You saw his team's work… they're good, very good." Doubtful, came Isumi's voice.

"Naah, I don't buy it. There's no way it was only his Squadron that took everyone out, we counted at least a hundred fifty dead machines with no bodies and two M.I.A.s. I won't deny he's good, but that's ridiculous." As part of their group of three, Munakata frowned her a look.

"Who else though? If the Professor was sending another team, that would be us. Everyone else at Yokohama is basically filtered trash and we're the only elites left."

"I… I don't care! But somebody definitely helped them! I won't accept a group of newly promoted trainees being this skillful!" A bit riled up, Mitsuki was.

"Haa… doesn't matter now, let's just say the terrorist attack months back weakened the base's defence for them." Finding a middle ground, Isumi made a very logical suggestion.

"On that note, who were the terrorist groups that hit Yukon?" Munakata asked confusedly.

"It was… I think RLF with imbedded Allegiance agents; they screwed up everything for everyone." Unknown to Isumi, those were labels freshly imprinted in Munakata's mind.

"Allegiance…"

"Right, right. Didn't you fight them during that thing we did that time? It was for your million Euro boyfriend, what was his name again?" This golden opportunity to tease at Munakata's weakness wasn't allowed escape by Mitsuki.

"H-he-he isn't that! We only promised to meet each other again!" And the auburn haired girl dug her grave deeper with her fluster much to Mitsuki's pleasure.

"Pff-pffff! Yeah, right! Kazama told me this! He was such a white knight! Kneeling down and kissing your hand! Was he gonna propose next!?"

"Touko told you WHAT!? Agrrra! I've been betrayeeeeed!" She pretended to wail for the misery of Kazama's secret spilling.

"Heheheh, that sure was a fun time, the Type-A dresses were so cozy, almost unbelievable." Isumi recalled their relaxing days as the group reached the PX.

 **Munakata Misae**

 **Yukon Base, PX**

"Hey guys, I just realized that… we ain't got any cash." Hayase's consciousness came a bit late now that all three Valkyries were standing before the vending machine.

"Urm… did anyone bring their MPC credit card?"

"Nada."

"Sorry, don't have mine, Captain." Isumi sighed lightly.

"Humm… fine, I'll pay for your drinks. Need to withdraw some money first though, this thing doesn't accept card. You're with me, Hayase."

"Roooger!" So the two set off for the nearest ATM or whatever could exchange Isumi's fund.

Left alone, Misae had plenty of time to think and that was exactly what she did.

His name was Silvio Orlandi, she still remembered it clearly. An intelligence agent for the EU, he was tasked with spying on Yokohama and Alternative IV about three months ago. On that front, the man did a terrible job, and was only used by the Professor to flush out sleeper agents within their base.

But to Misae, he was someone more important than a tool. The Million Euros Man was someone she couldn't figure out about on her own.

"That wasn't too slow, actually. What do you want? No alcohol." Misae finished her thought in time for Isumi's return.

"I'll take a Popsi, thanks, Captain." Hayase ordered her carbonated soft drink.

"Then a Mountain Drool for me, appreciate it, Capt. Isumi."

"Yeah, yeah. Treat me something else next time." Kindly paying for their drinks, Isumi bent down to fetch the cold beverages from the slot.

"Hayase, you first. Catch." Without looking behind her, Isumi tossed the plastic can over her shoulders, right into Hayase's grip.

"Oooh, got it." Next was Misae, Hayase moved out of the way as Isumi continued to grab the drink.

"A-huh? I… can't reach it, why is it so deep in?" Isumi bent lower on the floor in her attempt to retrieve Misae's soda.

"Got a problem? Let me help." Hayase leaned over to see Isumi's concern more clearly.

As the only one not staring at a vending machine, Misae surveyed the Alaska PX. Around her were many other Eishis from various nations, both uniforms and fortified suits were not short on supply from the many different colours of patches she observed.

However, amongst them only one suit caught her eye. A T-shirt unlike any other, wore by a man she just stored to the back of her mind. A blonde man, messy but stylish haircut. Their relationship, built on top of lies and trickery.

Even so, there existed something candid. Misae thought now be a good time to forget her oldest past and pursue a newer one.

 **Hayase Mitsuki**

"Is this thing for real? There's a fucking hole on the button?! What the FUCK?!"

"Haa… calm down, Hayase. Here, Munakata, your delayed drink is here." Isumi did another overhead throw, but only the crashing sound of plastic bouncing on concrete was heard.

"Huh? Munakata? Munakata? Where're you?" Mitsuki didn't see anyone resembling her teammate when she turned around.

"She's not here? What is this?" Isumi said, her annoyance already started to pile after their long day.

"Munakata!? MUNAKATA!?" She was already gone.

 **Author's note**

I didn't really leave for that long, had more time than I thought. Now that my next step in life is secured, you won't believe how fast I went from 'education is everything' to 'fuck school'.

Err, counting this one, Sadogashima will officially start in five chapters. That's good news, right? The drawback for that is Yukon characters won't be as flushed out as I'd like, but you guys don't really seem interested in them. So I won't bother dragging shit on for too long, I can write them later anyway.

Still, this arc wasn't all bad, right? I kinda like it, had its moments. I learned a lot about writing and stuff, so we're all happy.

By the way, omakes still exist. I have couple of them written, but will only post when fitting the occasion. Some of them are spoilers (nobody cares about a fic spoiler, but still).

Other than that, leave a review and/or favourite and that stuff. It helps me out, don't know how it helps, but it just does. Maybe.

One last thing, if you spot a mistake somewhere, please tell me. Also, this site censors a bunch of words, like how it censored improvised explosive device's abbreviation. Which is just… let's say difficult to understand for me.

BETA done by chad001, what do you call a Communist sniper?

A Marxman

(I feel like I already used his one. If I did, go fuck yourself)


	37. The sixth sense

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **JST, UTC+9**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's bedroom**

"The condoms, why does Yuuko-sensei have so many…?!"

"Uuuaa… You don't think… haa…! She also has one of 'those'… do you?" Always the one coming up with the most farcical assumptions, that Kei.

"No… thank god no. I can personally testify for that." I pushed out my comment through our laboured breathing.

"Nuummaa… got it on with Vice-Commander Kouzuki…? Respect, Shirogane."

"Why my family name, Kei?"

"I'm fine like that… now give me a kiss… fast." Did this even count as a functional conversation? Were any messages getting across?

"Stick your tongue out… I can't— urrmm… this position is damn awkward."

"Nnn—! Agreed…! Do me from the back, easier… nnhhhaa… that way!" Smearing our fluid as I rotated around, Kei wasn't wrong on her recommendation.

—

"Uuu…! Uhhnnhhaaa! AHHHaaahhhaa! …Haa… haa…" Zero comment.

"Haa… haaa… I think it may have broken…" A dangerous update was posted by her.

"Really…? Hold on, let me check—"

"Yeah, positively broken."

"Bu-bu-but… why?"

"Wrong question, Takeru."

"NOOOOO! This can't be real! How do you know!?"

"My belly… feels so warm…"

"Let me just… pull out and— ah, welp."

"Don't worry… I'll pay for child support."

"How about I Falcon Punch you in the stomach?"

"Go fuck yourself."

"…I mean, dramatizing, aren't we?"

"Do you think… having children would be nice…?" Ruining our funny mood entirely, Kei spoke in melancholy as she lay down to my side.

"Eh? That came outta nowhere, woman."

"Exactly, I'm a female too… one day… I want a family." Her words were sincere, the most honest desire of a girl was before me and I had no idea how to respond.

"If we get rid of the BETA one day, that would very much be possible." However, this dream of mine was a long-stretch by any standard.

"I… nevermind, should have went bareback if we knew."

"Ah— yeah, you right. Let's switch then. Kasumi, how's Meiya?" Pulling away from Kei completely, I cleaned up our mess with a few dozen napkins to make the place less disgusting and more hygienic. Because germs are bad, germs are bad in all cases.

"Takeru-san, I'm sorry." There was Kasumi, there was Meiya. Something wasn't right though.

"Did you… Meiya, hey, Meiya! C'mon, you already done?"

"Uuuuuu… T-Taaakkerru… please… forgive me for my… weak endurance… I cannot… tread on any longer." And then she passed out.

"…Kasumi, you know those drugs they had around the fifties for gay people?"

"You mean something like chemical castration?"

"That's the thing that makes you not want to bang, right?"

"If 'bang' refers to sexual intercourse, then yes."

"Aggra, we can't have that. You exist to relieve me of my sexual tension."

"I understand."

"That was a joke… don't take me seriously, Kasumi."

"Okay."

"But for realz, you're sucking them dry faster than me! Teach me some of your techniques, I need your skills."

"Another time, we're lacking in persons for me to demonstrate."

"Guess that's the case, wanna get it on then?"

"Yes, please. I can't hold myself back anymore." When had the apprentice overtaken the master?

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **AKDT, UTC-8**

 **Yukon Base** **conference room**

"Yeah, please get those DIA people off me, Mr. Secretary. I know I sorta lied to them completely. To be fair though, they were also gonna turn on me anyway."

"Well… officially I'll give you a 'no comment', but just between the two of us, the DIA is biting much more than they can chew in my opinion." Again, Yuuko really liked the new SecDef after the coup.

"See!? They think picking up the CIA's burden is sooo easy! So it's not my fault, right?"

"Professor Kouzuki… please. I'll ask Henry to calm down in investigating your people, gonna have a little tea party with him. He's a good friend of mine, even before I got this seat." The relationship of others wasn't a major catch for Yuuko's attention.

"Alright, sounds nice enough. Also you're very welcome, for that position by the way." Yuuko constantly liked to remind the SecDef how she was partly the one responsible for firing the last person in his job.

"Professor… is it me or did your personality get more laid-back recently? You sounded quite stressed out the last time we talked, that was before I received my promotion."

"Ayy… it's a… side-effect of my project; I've been hanging out around lots of kids these days. Rotten teenagers and the like, habits rub off." What she didn't mention was the slow-steady stream of memories creeping in her head more and more often these days.

"I see how it is, you take care of yourself, Professor. Anyway, if we see me calling the DIA off you as a favour, do you have anything to repay the Congress for our wasted time?"

"America at its finest, right? Don't worry, I know exactly what you people like. Priority is to keep yourselves as the number one superpower and eliminate all threats to the State. It makes sense."

"And that's why half of the conservative party hates you, Professor. Alternative IV is viewed as a greater risk compared to V. You understand how much some of us like bombing everything to kingdom come and asking for permission later." Alternative V, classic strategy indeed.

"If you don't care at all for what happens after that, then yeah, sure, go right on ahead."

"Which I wholeheartedly disagree with, that's why I personally want to empower you, Professor Kouzuki. G-Bombs are not the answer; they're a pause button for our problems, a temporary solution for the time being."

"Because people don't like looking forward to the future these days, it makes them all the more attractive." The American man nodded eloquently to Yuuko's comment.

"Moving on though, I believe it's time to strike another deal between us. You know, even if we just forget for a moment here that you used a team of XM3 equipped soldiers to attack Yukon Base which held US property and damaged our property without a care, there're still problems with us handing over the 70d."

"Err… think of that attack as a demonstration, okay? And we mostly acted in the Soviet side of things, as for the XG-70d… whyyy noooot!?" Yuuko was absolutely fine with throwing a tantrum in front of a TV monitor, she was just that type of a person.

"First of all, Congress just won't go anywhere these days, largely due to… democracy. And without the President's direct approval, there'll be no deal to speak of in the first place."

"So why won't Mr. President give me money?"

"There're many factors… hold on, let me check security…" That was an unexpected way to end a sentence.

"Hey, Mr. Secretary, what's going on?"

"Don't worry, I'm back. Anyway, to say it nicely; it's mostly because he still can't collect his shit after the CIA's plot."

"Ooooh… HA! Haha…! I really like you, Mr. Secretary, did I mention that before?" The middle-aged man laughed a bit to avoid continuing this side-track.

"Unfortunately, you'll just have to wait, Professor. I'm powerless to help you in this regard. Besides, you already have the 70b. By no mean is it stronger than 70d, but it still counts for something. And that something will have to do for now.

"Uuuu… fiiiine! I'll just go blow up Sadogashima without your help then!"

"Yes, of course. Perhaps you can shoot off your own particle cannon without our help next time, I'm counting on it."

"Mooo… I'm sad now." Incapable of further progression, Yuuko sighed in submission. This was just one of those times when patience becomes a forced quality.

"Ahaa… c'mon, Professor, don't be like that. I'll have Lockweed send over a couple of EMD Phase 2s just for you. So cheer up, okay?"

"For real? You the man, Mr. Secretary. You are the man!" Instant mood swing was instant. Yuuko felt overjoyed by how generous this new chief executive officer acted compared to the last one.

"Think of it as a personal investment from me. The Senate is going to seriously regret their decision if you mess up, so please, Professor Kouzuki. For the sake of everything, don't ruin it." Now was about time for Yuuko to renounce herself as serious again.

"I know, and I'll add something for you as well. A promise to share some G-Elements if we recover enough of them. Also you'll get an invitation for whatever next Hive op we got lined up here."

"Really now? Such generosity is rare from you, Professor."

"No matter how much we fight each other inwardly, at the end of the day, BETA still will have an upper hand." Stopping human infighting was next to impossible, so they'll have to settle for a truce that can last up to eternity.

"That is true, America's policy is the protection of its own assets first and foremost, I unreservedly agree with that. But what we lack is time, our resources are finite; we cannot afford a war of attrition against an opponent that is engaging us in total war."

"It's funny… we invented treaties like the Geneva Conventions to prevent mistreatment of POWs and then the BETA comes along… well, they eat people." Yuuko didn't enjoy it, the finest irony of their desperate time wasn't all that entertaining.

"Humanity fought in total war against the aliens for fifty years now, we have to end it soon. We must end it soon."

"And I will do that, the BETA will go extinct by our generation. Your grandchildren are only gonna see BETA in their history books."

"Unfortunately, my kids have seen it in our propaganda posters."

"Then your great-grandchildren, don't be so picky."

"Ahahahahaa… hopefully." Both adults shared a quick laugh together.

"You've such a vision, unlike most of the US government I had to deal with. I believe you can do it, Mr. Secretary, make America great again!" Now was the time to bring out the trolls.

"Alright… that's plenty enough for this conversation, I'll be going now. Good day, Professor Kouzuki."

"Oh, oh! You know what else we can do! We can build a great, great wall and have the BETA pay for it! What an ingenio—" The transmission was then cut.

 **Munakata Misae**

 **Yukon Base, PX**

"Oh, look whose back. Munakata! That was a fun stroll, eh?!" From a distance, Misae already spotted an overly eager Hayase.

"Hum, it had its merits." A frown was shot her way when Isumi perceived her distress.

"What happened? Did you see someone you know?" Misae grasped lightly at her Captain's accurate instinct.

She sat down on the bench next to Hayase and was pushed a drink she had saved for her. Misae was at a loss for thought, what transpired at her absence had nothing to do with the two Valkyries relaxing besides her, yet she hoped for someone to share her pain.

"Actually… no. I'm sure it was him but- I couldn't catch up, he was too fast and hidden… I lost him in the crowd."

"Awww, that's so sad~! I hate losing him in the crowd too! It's like he doesn't even care about me in the slightest~" In retrospect, Misae deserved Hayase's mockery.

"I saw Million Euros again, it was Silvio Orlandi." This time around, Misae's declaration blew away both Hayase and Isumi's composure, the girls stopped their sips midway and stared back, total disbelieve in their eyes.

"Oh wow, REALLY!? That GUY!? But we were just all talking about him! That's amazing! That's actually INSANE!" Hayase made an obvious remark.

"That's exactly what I thought. Hahaha, crazy, right?" All Misae could do was laugh awkwardly, this type of setting was not her forte.

"Are you sure it's him?" Next, Isumi continued to nit-pick at the details.

"Arr… it's not like I can prove a negative in this case, so it might not really be him."

"Still, you wish to believe, right? You want to see him again. You want it to be something more." This was a private question Misae never desired to face. It was for today only, both her friends suddenly became super good at noticing her display of weakness.

"I… no, it's not like that. He's… it's all for fun, nothing more." For Misae, the feelings of her heart were only a distraction. She had duties to complete, burdens to shoulder.

"If that's what you say then it's fine, but just know that for people like us, these kind of opportunities don't stay for very long." The hidden implication of Hayase's message was spoken under personal experience.

"I know that! This sort of stuff takes time! I… can't just… decide on a whim wh-what I feel about this!" Flustered, so rarely did Misae get embarrassed by herself.

"Ahahahah! Thus, that leaves Haruka and me as the only people without an available target! Aaaah! Takayuki! You stupid shit! At least find a replacement for me- for you!" Throwing her pony-tail around, Hayase screamed to the skies as she derailed Misae's topic in favour of her own.

"Hayase… well, for someone like you, Suzumiya should be good enough. Sail that ship of yours, it's your destiny." Once again, Misae fixed her mask of a cool beauty before it cracked apart too much.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 22, 2001**

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's bedroom**

Awake, lying all by myself on the bed surrounded by three sleeping beauties really put things into perspective for me. I came home after a successful mission, another job performed relatively flawlessly. The future had yet again changed towards the unknown, infinite amount of prospects opened up their doors.

Yuuya Bridges, Cryska Barchenowa, Inia Sestina, Takamura Yui.

Like me, they were soldiers, fighting for the good of humanity. Fitting their unique circumstances, I had helped them solve some of the biggest problems in their lives. At Yokohama, wavering paths were before them, a tomorrow nobody could predict.

Also that Chinese chick, shouldn't forget about her.

I honestly have no idea how their involvement in Alternative IV could affect us down the line, but if I must place my bet now; I cannot allow them to interfere anymore than they already have.

"Sadogashima… twenty-first is my second least favourite number." It was close, we were close.

As I unwarp myself from the many arms clinching to my body, the room door was slammed open with a loud smack. A bright ray of light assaulted my senses which only made me wish to retreat further back to the land of dreams.

"Ahah! Spotted Takeru-chan! Good morning!" From the speech pattern of the caller, it was obvious to me Sumika just rudely entered the bedroom. I was still too dizzy to realize the strange tone of her voice.

"Arr, morning, Sumika. You still didn't resign from the job of waki—"

Then I saw her; other than the UN uniform issued to all officers, nothing was right about the girl before me. Silver hair to the shoulders, twin hair bands, unorganized fringe and also bigger racks; I was about a hundred fifty-five percent sure this wasn't Sumika.

"Okay… I know you're new here, but what the actual fuck, Barchenowa. How did you even get in this room?"

"Eh? What're you talking about, Takeru-chan?" I had so many questions for Bridges' girlfriend, however number one was why she wasn't leaving right now.

"I can't even… just leave and give me some privacy, I need to change."

"Ahhaa! But I've important stuff to tell you!" This was beyond irrational now.

"Wha— GET THE FUCK OUT!" Pitching a pillow at her, I whacked Barchenowa right in the face with a solid toss.

"OOwwwieee! Okay, okay! I'll wait outside!" Said the weirdo as she walked out, closing the door on her way.

Confused and already tired, I climbed out from under the sheets and threw on my uniform. Everyone else sleeping right now showed no sign of waking up fast thanks to our very exciting night, so I cloaked them nicely with the blanket once more before leaving to meet up with crazy in the hallway.

"So… why're you doing this?"

"Hrr… you're acting so weird today, Takeru-chan! I just came over to tell you about yesterday night!" At this point, I mostly grasped the current situation.

"That's you right, Sumika?"

"Huuuh? Obviously! Who else could it be—" Ahead of her sentence, I groped her breast first.

"These aren't yours, you're like a what? D cup at best, she's at least about eighty-eight? So an E… maybe F? I can't remember how it works." Few extra squeezes for good measure.

"…Awawa…"

"And it's like you're not even trying to imitate her. Other than you, who else calls me 'Takeru-chan' in such a stupid manner?" Squeeze, squeeze. Squeeze, squeeze.

"Awa-wawawwawa…!"

"Furthermore, your foolishness can indisputably be felt on my skins no matter what physical form you take anyway. So it's kinda pointless." Just couldn't really stop, it happens.

"Oooohhh-ooooohhhhhh…!"

"You even listening, woman? Pay attenti—"

"TAKERU-CHAN YOU STUPPPIDD IDIDOOOOT!" Uppercut, delivered on-time right to my face.

"ARTILLERY~!" I couldn't think of anything cool to scream right then, also thank god Barchenowa didn't hit too hard.

—

"That was one of them usual routines, happy now, Sumika?"

"Yep! I feel much better now about accidently taking over Cryska-chan's body!"

"You're one dumb fuck, how did this even happen?" A chop to Sumika's possessed head was out of the question, so I had to settle for verbally abusing her.

"I tried to sync with her through our projections but she was still too fragile to connect, so I did a manual linkage on her, then this happened!" That was the most tactical sounding bullshit I ever heard.

"And it means?"

"I dunno! We're just testing things out!" And now it turned to real rubbish.

"Yoooou … I have no words… YOOOOOOUUUU!" I grabbed her shoulders and shook the girl around violently to get my point across.

"~uuuu- UUUUU~ uuuu~ I"M GETTING~ dizzy~!" Sumika cried using someone else's body as she complained.

"Don't go playing with yourself all willy-nilly! You're military property for Christ's sake! You think G-element comes cheap at a supermarket sale!?"

"~UUUUUUUU! Buuuut we were only messssssing arrround!" Fake tears streamed down fake Sumika's cheeks like raindrop.

"Also, where's Barchenowa's personality?" To answer me, she shot back this super confused look.

"I dunno! I did see myself on the bed this morning though!"

"YOOOOU stupppiiidd hoe! Stooooop doiiiing thiiiiis!" Our friendly argument was going nowhere fast.

"Ah, AHHHHHA! 1st Lt. KAGAMI!" That answered one of my questions.

There, by the end of the hallway came running over was none other than Sumika's physical body. She tried her best to look composed and failed miserably as the panic spread through this poor girl's face like wildfire.

"Haaa… my life…" All I could do was sighing.

"Oh! Cryska-chan! Good morning!"

"Sup, Russian Second Lieutenant."

"Yes, good morning, 1st Lt. Kagami. Capt. Takeru-chan— no! That's not what I'm here for! Please give me my body back!" What a treat for my eyes, there were Sumika and Barchenowa, their bodies swapped like a cheap plot twist.

"Even if you say that… do you know what happened between us that made us switch bodies?"

"Errr… we attempted a level seven synchronization and it was too straining on your system so you stopped… but what happened afterwards, I have no recollection. I woke up thirteen minutes ago in your body, 1st Lt. Kagami." That was the most intelligent thing to ever come out of Sumika's mouth, I was impressed.

"Urrrrm…! We were both really tired from the sync, and we fell asleep after it overloaded, right?! Could it be that?"

"I don't have a say on this, 1st Lt. Kagami."

"Arrrra! So annoying! Why can't I remember!?" The annoying part wasn't wrong.

"Am I… am I needed here? Because I seriously don't want to be here right now." Either this mess was going to solve itself or someone was going to solve it, that someone would be me anytime soon.

"Do you have somewhere else you must be, Kapitan?"

"Yeeaaa, I need to be where you two aren't bitching. But whatever, I'll call Yuuko-sensei for this. She probably knows what's going on with this crazy chaos." Having Barchenowa stuck in Sumika's body was quite unpleasant, especially if Bridges sees this and gets confused.

 **Briefing room**

"It was surprising how she explained the situation. You almost think it was intentional that the two of you'd fuse together." Back from my call, I had gathered our group in a spare room prior to making it.

"So what's going on, Takeru-chan?"

"You, as a robot person can link your mind to specific people because your 00 unit abilities. Barchenowa is one of those workable people, or something like that. Just like how you control the Susanoo with brain-power, you can control her body through remote telepathy." If this sounded like bullshit, I would agree.

Sensei clearly wasn't in the mood for an explanation when I called, she seemed to be talking with another dude about more secret stuff. I wasn't too interested in what it was so I asked no more.

"If my understanding is correct, does that mean 1st Lt. Kagami has the ability to freely control the body of any esper?" Barchenowa asked me as Sumika.

"Yep, that's the main idea. How this works? I have no clue. Although sensei said she can revert it when she comes back, there's a bunch of experiments she wants to run on you pair." Mad-scientist at her finest.

"Ehhh? Kouzuki-sensei's experiments are always so weiiiiird!" Like I wouldn't know it.

"Don't worry too much, Barchenowa. You don't know the Professor, but she isn't a bad person at heart. We won't torture you like the Russians, just work for us and your treatment should be great."

"I understand, so currently I'm stuck in 1st Lt. Kagami's body with no means of switching back?"

"Oh yeah, guess not. I ain't happy about this; I can't grope either of you now." Using the esper's body, Sumika scowled me with eyes.

"Grope…? Is that something I can help you with, Capt. Takeru-chan?" This nickname never gets old no matter how many times she says it.

"It's… arr, not what we should do together. Get Bridges to help you with it."

"Understood, I will ask Yuuya to grope me." And I will work as the cameraman.

"Not now, stupid. There are a few tests I have to run on you first, even before Yuuko-sensei gets her hands on you." Some theories would make me happy if they were confirmed.

"What do you want, Takeru-chan?"

"You're up, Sumika. Turn on that projector with your mind." I pointed to said projector hung from the ceiling.

"Huh? Sure." Waving her hand like a Jedi, Sumika flicked on that device without touching it.

"Surprised, Barchenowa?"

"…No, I was informed by First Lieutenant about her abilities before coming back." Always the blabbermouth, Sumika never changes.

"Then you try, since you're in her body, you should be able to do the same thing." At my reveal, both girls had a revelation of the truth. Sumika did in fact turn on this projector while not inside her own body.

"Allow me to attempt it." Extending out her arm, Barchenowa focused passionately at the immobile machine, which was really pointless because it deactivated immediately without any effort.

"Wow… did… I do that?"

"Uh-huh, this's an interesting development, I see. We'll try again, but you get out, Barchenowa. Try to open this door once it closes, and Sumika will keep turning on the projector."

 **Yokohama Base, Detention block**

To cut some trials short, the pair had full control over their mental power. Both for Sumika who wasn't in her body and Barchenowa who wasn't the 00 unit. This was a short test sensei asked me to run over the phone a bit earlier, she said it was the first step to upgrading Sumika.

"Huhu, this place was much cleaner than when I visited last time." We moved on to another matter.

"Yeah? I supposed you people do know manners, good for me." Laying soothingly on the prison bunk, a twin-tailed Chinese girl answered my call.

Bending her legs up, she leaped off the bed like how those people in Chinese Kung-Fu movies often do, a testament to her flexibility and muscle strength. She walked forward, out of the cell's shadow and into the light. Her countenance now free for me to exhibit.

What I could only refer to as cat-bells were tied to the buns separately on her twin-tail, this green haired Eishi stared me straight in the eyes for a good dozen seconds before smirking lightly and backing away from the bars.

"So? Can I go yet?" Classic question to ask.

"Sumika, get a read in." There were policies to establish if she wished for her freedom, so I called my super CPU for an accurate read in on her temperament.

Then Sumika (still in Barchenowa's body) strolled on in looking gleeful as ever, not once considering the fact that she currently was occupying somebody else's flesh. Instead, she stood right in front of the bars, giving the Chinese a perfect look.

"2nd Lt. Barchenowa? You look… abnormally happy." This was just pain… so much pain.

"Urrm… she's clean, Takeru-chan! She only wandered on the plane looking for that Bridg—" Chop went first, chop was more important than the rest of her sentence.

"You… just… gave… away… my name!"

"Owiee…! Owiee…! Owiee…! Owiee…! Owiee…!" Five consecutive hits later, Sumika cried Barchenowa's tears while holding her head in pain.

"Urr… haa…? What's even happening?" I didn't blame the Mandarin girl for not understanding.

"God, I'm squandered right now… you! What's your name!?" In hindsight, I could've searched her up as the Bao-Feng leader, but that required work I wasn't willing to put in.

"Isn't it good manners to give your own name when asking others?" What was this? Was I sensing sarcasm in her voice?

"You really want to do this right now?" To cut to the chase, I pulled my sidearm and just unloaded an entire magazine into the cell block behind her, narrowly missing her by inches several times.

"Holy shit! Okay-okay! Calm down, calm down!" My aggression delivered my message much better than words. The girl flinched backwards and almost fell on her butt.

"Lady, tell me who the fuck you are right now or we're never seeing each other again." This alone was a burden on my patience.

"Fine…! People's Liberation Army Independent Test Flight Bao-Feng leader, Shàngwèi Cui Yifei." Giving me a lazy salute, Cui stated her rank and origin.

"Capt. Cui, we have detained you on charges of infiltration and hostile intention on friendlies. Although we can't press those charges due to the nature of our situation."

"Oh, really? You mean an UN attack on an UN base isn't to be made public knowledge? Colour me shocked." Leaning in on the bars, our faces were merely centimetres away.

"You know what. Fuck Bridges, I think I'm just gonna kill you off. We can deal with a M.I.A investigation if it comes to it." Taking into account everything at stake here compared to the benefit of keeping her alive, I honest to god planned on just putting a bullet through her brain right there.

"PLEASE WAIT! Capt. Takeru-chan! You promised Yuuya that nobody will have to die!" Jumping into the fray was obviously none other than Barchenowa, she grabbed the new mag I planned on loading and just wouldn't let go.

"I never said anything like that."

"You were thinking about it! I can tell!" Right, she also had Sumika's superior reading.

"You— fine, whatever. Capt. Cui, better make yourself comfortable. You won't be leaving for a while." I had things more vital to do than messing about with a Chinese and an esper.

"Ah… oh— hey! You shot my bed!"

"Relax, it's still soft enough." Now with nothing to say, I left her behind as Sumika and Barchenowa bid their goodbyes.

"Wait! I'm not done asking questions yet!" She was so misdirected on who had the general power in our situation.

"No. You are done asking questions."

"Then I'm not talking to you! 2nd Lt. Barchenowa! How is he!? How is Yuuya!?" Desperately trying to prolong our conversation, Cui turned to the Russian as I had no interest left.

"Yuuya is… he's safe here, this place isn't dangerous. I can promise that." Somebody did answer her call; it wasn't me, first of all. It also wasn't Barchenowa herself, instead Sumika who borrowed the Soviet's body replied to the twin-tail.

 _Sumika!? What're you doing!?_ Obviously, she acting out of line was an insult to me, personally.

" _It's okay, Takeru-chan. I don't want anyone else to be hurt anymore._ " To that, I couldn't respond anything.

"You'll take care of him, right!? You have to now! You're the only one… he looks at now." The sentence brought deep sadness to our Chinese friend in the cage here, trivial relationship problems were below my level of concern.

"I'll protect him, Inia and I are his guardians. We're lives he sacrificed everything to protect… so now it's our time to watch over his future."

"People will live on, Barchenowa! A path will always be there as long as people are alive! If you're so insistent on being with him, promise you'll never give up! I have to know! If it's safe… to leave him with you!"

Increasing the tension, Cui banged her hands against the cold bars of her cell. Sumi— for now, it was Barchenowa; she stepped forward, not a sign of reluctance to be detected in her eyes.

"I promise. Yuuya saved us, our gratitude will not disappear forever."

 **Hallway**

"Sumika, you know how I get jealous easily. Don't do that again."

"Uuu, but it'll be super weird if Cryska-chan told her using my body!" That was the only reason I didn't subject her to waterboarding right there.

"Fine, fine. You two, we're done for now until the Professor gets back. I ain't having two body swapped fuckwits running around my base, go back and your room and await further orders. I'll see Bridges and Sestina."

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Kagami's room**

"Hey, Cryska-chan! C'mon here, c'mon here!" Energetically waving her arm, Sumika summoned Cryska to sit beside her on the bed intended for one.

"What is it, 1st Lt. Kagami?"

"Ahaha! Just call me Sumika like Inia-chan! Don't worry too much about behaviours and stuff!" Formality had always just been a pain for the almighty 00 unit.

"Okay, Sumika." Cryska sat down closely next to her. Still inside each other's bodies, the girls were at a loss for theme material as they anticipated the Professor's return.

In silence both espers sat, not knowing the best or proper discussion to carry out. Sumika darted her eyes repeated over her own body which was in ownership of another, then back onto her temporary flesh. There were differences, so many differences.

"…Uuuuu! Cryskkkkkaa-chaaaan! Your boobs really are just… really biiiig!" Completely random and pointless was Sumika's pronouncement.

"EH?! I mean— yes, they're… errr, well developed? The genes used to create me were like that."

"But look! They're sooo round! And huge! And bouncy! And soft and soooo huuuge!" Best described as self-molestation, Sumika fondled her possessed body to great pleasure.

"S-su-SUMIKA! S-s-stop playing with me!" Humiliated and flustered, Cryska shouted nervously at the over-the-top girl.

"Oh! Oh, oh~oh! Is your 'down-there' also white as well!? Let me check, let me cheeecck!"

"Aahhaa! SUMIKA!"

"Oh-my-god! It is! Your other hair is also WHITE! It's pure WHITE!"

"AAAAHAAA!"

"Mwahahaha! I'm Cryska-chan and I dress like a scantily clad!" Still overly excited, Sumika undid her uniform leaving only a single button holding together the suit over her breasts. Then she grabbed the bunny hairclip from Cryska's head and wore it herself.

"Suuumiiikaaa! STOOOP IT!"

"MAHAHAHAHA! YAAAY! I have big BOOBIES! WOOHOO!" What a day, what a day.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Guest room #4**

"You two, how's the stay? Finding things comfortable?"

"Huuh, not too bad. Although I want to see Cryska more than just sitting here with nothing to do." As expected, Bridges wasn't having the time of his life under house arrest.

"Cryska, Cryska! Where's she!?"

So I visited Bridges and his cute but sometime annoying loli companion, they were fine, doing okay and stuff. The pair was assigned a normal room yesterday after they got off the plane; Barchenowa was taken by Sumika meaning this trio hadn't seen each other yet since our arrival.

"We're still running things down there. You know, to make sure she doesn't die outta nowhere."

"Okay, thanks for that." Bridges accepted my explanation easily.

"Other than that, go see Takamura in the meantime. She could get lonely by herself." On that note, we had Takamura living in a separate room alone. Poor girl was probably going sullen all the way, not knowing anything.

"Sure, we've access to all floors above eleven, right?"

"Uh-huh, your card is good for that." It was preferable if Bridges couldn't wander to any floor he fancied.

"Alright, I'll go take a look around then. You coming?"

"Nah, I've to watch over Sumika and your Russian. We've ran into a problem, it's nothing major but requires constant attention." And constant attention was way worse than immediate attention.

"We'll be on our way then, let's go, Inia."

"Okay! I wonder if Yui is having more fun than us!" Following closely after them, we all left the room and entered the hallway.

In the hallway, I couldn't say I expected what I saw.

"WAHAHAHA! Yaay! White panties! YAAAY!"

"Ahaaaa! Ahhhaaa! STOOOP! AAAAAH!"

So I just closed the door behind me, right? Then I turned around, okay? And what did I see? What did I just fucking witness?

"…What? What. The. Fuck?"

"…Cr-c-Cryska? What're you doing?"

"Waaaa! Cryska! Sumika! Wait for me!"

And there went Sestina, chasing after two girls running ahead. She seemed pretty happy, that was a good thing, right?

"I-I-I I can't— I can't even… I can't even… THE ACTUAL FUCK WAS THAT!?"

I saw Barchenowa's body first, running half-naked across the hallway wearing underwear on her head and holding Sumika's hairband. And then there was Sumika, following after the Russian in total panic as she clumsily zipped up her uniform while also trying to pull up her pants.

"Was that… was that Cryska, Captain?" Utter confusion wasn't suffered by Bridges alone.

"Err… no?"

"We should go after them."

"Yeah, no shit. I don't even know the fuck's happening anymore." What a day, today truly was special.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Pacific Ocean, 7000 MASL**

"Professor, if this plan indeed comes to past, you could very well be known as humanity's saviour."

"Well, it wouldn't be me but close enough." With a quiet laugh, Yuuko took the document passed back from First Lieutenant Silvio Orlandi, who was an Intelligence agent for the EU as they spoke.

Gazing outside the plane window until Yuuko poured him a cup of wine, 1st Lt. Silvio thanked the Professor for her liberality and took a sip. From his expression, she was glad the taste of this beverage was worth its cost.

"Still, Professor Kouzuki, this would be a pipedream for us a few years back. Twelve, eleven, nine, thirteen, seventeen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-six and one. You're saying they'll be all gone by the December of next year if Alternative IV is activated?"

"Absolutely, I'll turn Sadogashima into a vacation island for next summer season." Confident was Yuuko's manner, she fully believed in herself and her project.

"And they've all approved of your plan? The Russians, Americans, Imperials and Royalists? All of them?"

"Also yes, we're very close now. COSEAN, UFC, MEU and African Union have yet to be informed of our plan. Although I don't suspect them rejecting us, seeing how the UN holds heavy influence over those sections. Maybe not so much for the Chinese, but once Cheorwon is gone; they can't hold a candle to us."

"I see, the Fox of Yokohama. A fitting nickname for someone like you, Professor." To Yuuko's ears, this was the best praise she could hope for.

"Now you know why you're invited for this ride, 1st Lt. Silvio."

"Ah, of course. Only the EU is left, after all. NATO won't disagree with you either." The Euro man smiled knowingly to Yuuko's remark.

"As much as you Europeans are nice and kind, relying solely on TSF development isn't going anywhere fast."

"I understand that, but using super-weapon on par with American's G-Bombs will take time for the many nations to be convinced." EU's anti-non-conventional technology protocol was something Yuuko would like to deconstruct.

"So, how's the situation over there?" However, receiving information was the more important objective for their conversation.

"Complicato. The Warsaw Pact— excuse me, the Eastern European Socialist Alliance is causing some problems within EU. They been executing large-scale Culling operations against Norway and the surrounding regions, what concerns us is how successful it has been."

"The Cold War never really ended, has it?" 1st Lt. Silvio nodded candidly. It was common knowledge how the war of intelligence had been put on pause after the BETA invasion. Between communities and capitalists, their only mutual goal was the defeat of those aliens.

"The EESA; mainly led by the GDR, they've been rapidly gaining military in the last couple of years. Their forces are one of the most experienced when it comes to anti-BETA and anti-human combat. The German Republic feels alarmed by their rise to power."

"And since both Germanys are based in Northern Ireland along with EU headquarters, I can see why you people would feel pressured. Can they do it? Take over the EU, I mean." Another sip of alcohol later, 1st Lt. Silvio turned more serious than earlier.

"That's the problem, we don't know. Given GDR's right to sovereignty, France, UK, Italy and Spain all have not investigated too deep into the East. Only the West itself is using its agencies in attempt to uncover some secrets, and they're throwing everything possible at the GDR."

"Which is not going well?" Yuuko asked.

"Indeed, BND to KSA, no intelligence agency have yet to find anything solid. The only thing they confirmed is that East Germany also has its own intelligence division countering their agents. Or more accurately, is bringing back its intelligence division."

"Yeah? Please tell me they're still the MfS, that'll be amazing." That would be gold in comedic value. For all intents and purposes, Yuuko was prepared to laugh.

"While a hundred percent unconfirmed, technically, the Stasi never was properly disbanded. Not even after 1983."

"Ahahahahahaa! What a twist, what a twist! Huhuhhu!" So laughed intensely, Yuuko did.

"You see now why we're so worried, and not just the West. If a full-on civil war breaks out in EU, the European Continent could be lost."

"Well…! We'll just have to clean you guys up if that happens! In case the EU really does fall, the U.N will come in and swoop up all your assets, I can guarantee that much. Don't worry, Europe won't be lost, it'll just switch ownership." To Yuuko's announcement, 1st Lt. Silvio snorted lightly in a facetious fashion.

"Hopefully Alternative IV can retake the mainland before anything like that occurs. If both sides have their homes back, there won't be any point left in fighting for ground."

"Speaking of us, will be you here for operation 21st?" Yuuko found now to be a good time for a change in topic.

"My mission in Yukon is largely completed, I'll be on standby before the Ministry sends me somewhere else. I'll ask them to let me obverse the operation, a good chance for both factions to gain something here."

"Good, good. It's nice to meet you again, First Lieutenant."

"You've said that already, Professor."

"And you've really grown to a mature adult, in just three months too."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Yokohama Base, PX**

"Ahahaha. Ahahaha. Ahahaha." Maybe a chop will heal her.

"Agaaaa." Again.

"Agaaaa." More impact this time.

"Agaaaaaaaa." It was now I realized, this shit ain't working.

"So… has Kasumi been like this ever since?"

"Uh-huh, woke up around seven O'clock… the creepy smile was already there." Ayamine provided me with answer.

All members of my team barring Sumika had assembled in the PX for our breakfast. When Kasumi arrived, she wore this strangely eerie grin over her features and started inaudibly giggling as she pleased. This led to an immediate headchop that did jackshit to cure her.

"Kasumi-san! What's so funny?" Tama, the brave one asked my bunny girl.

"Ahahaha. I don't know, I can't stop myself. Ahahaha." Sounded like a problem to me.

"Maybe she's intoxicated? What's that drug called again? Nitrous… monoxide?"

"Close, Sakaki. Nitrous oxide." Meiya filled in the memory gap Class rep had left behind.

"Right, like nitro. That stuff they use to boost cars." I commented using my own knowledge. Often in video games, I always nitro boost straight into a wall for an instant suicide. Good times.

"I am unsure if that is part of reality, however I can assure you Kasumi has not ingested any substance to affect her as such. Ayamine and I would have entered the same condition if it was released to us as gas."

"Hurm… Kasumi, you know what's wrong with you?"

"Ahahaha. I don't. Ahahaha. Please help, Takeru-san. Ahahahaha. It's painful." Irony was heavy as lead right about now.

"I mean… you want some more drugs?"

"Ahahaha. Please." All espers around me were nothing but trouble today. I was so sick of this shit.

 **Airstrip**

"Seeeenseeeei! Yuuuko-sensei! You gotta help a brother out hereeee!"

"Why're you yelling like a madman, Shirogane? I'm literally two feet in front of you."

"It's for dramatic effects, sensei. I can't just welcome you home normally." I held her hand as she descended the last couple of steps on the plane's staircase.

Yuuko-sensei returned to Yokohama much earlier than I would've guessed, seeing how much issues required her attention in Yukon, I didn't think she would return in just a day and a half.

"So, what do you need the second I'm back from my vacation?"

"Our teams of espers are being complete dickheads right now, I think you'll know what I mean when you see it."

"Lead the way then." I guided sensei back to the building as some more people got off her plane. From the sea of unrecognized faces, I saw Yoroi casually strolling out after everyone else.

 **Barrack**

"Ohhh, what a mess… oooooh my god, what a goddamn mess." That was the only correct reaction to this scene of insanity.

Prior to sensei's landing, Sumika and Barchenowa were both off the chart crazy doing what I could only recount as streaking. Anyway, I chucked their crazy asses into a room along with Sestina who gladly followed their footsteps, all this was done to prevent further distress for everyone.

Also I tossed in Kasumi to the pile as well for good measure, her creepy laugh was just hauntingly annoying. Surely, she was happy to be surrounded by the rest of her family members.

"Shirogane… your harem is developing in strange directions."

"How about you tell me something I don't know?"

"You're also developing in asshole-ish directions, but I'm probably crazier than you."

And now, I couldn't even explain what I was observing with words… to compare, this was probably closest to a softcore Yuri undertone harassment gangbang… yeah, that was about right. It was like they were posing for those really suggestive model pictures, nobody wore anything more than undergarments but I wasn't seeing any slips either.

"Mnnnurm… Cryska-chan… my body is soooo soft and fluffy too~!"

"~Kyaaa…! Sumika… don't— uuurm…! Rub them… like that!"

Sumika and Barchenowa were getting off with each other, I'll turn a blind eye to this and pretend it was a body massage, sounded good.

"Tie this end to your back and hook this shackle around your neck. Haha."

"Trista… are you sure Yuuya will like seeing me in this?"

"…I don't know. Ahahaha. Also, my name is not Trista, it's Kasumi."

On the other end, we got Kasumi binding up her twin sister BDSM style. What the actual fuck was going on here, like- I didn't even feel aroused by this because it was just so random.

"I leave for a day, Shirogane… and come back to this?"

"Shut up, sensei. You think I somehow made this happen?"

"Now we're not pointing fingers at anyone here but you do have a track record of being a sexual deviant, care to explain why that is?" What a personal shot she fired at me.

We stood at the door, awkwardly eyeing each other as the girls went downtown in the background. This was not predicted in any way possible, sensei sighed repeated to display her frustration for the world to see. As for me, I honestly got no idea how this happened, what caused this to happen and how to solve what happened.

"Today shall be known as one of them bullshit days in history, of the many more to come."

"Alright, here's what we're gonna do, Shirogane. Once they're no longer in heat, deliver them to lab #4, level seventeen. All my esper equipment is over there, I'll run checks on them."

"Got it, prepare to receive some intoxicated chicks."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

Two hours later, sensei was still typing away on her computer, not ready to disclose some juicy details on my girls after making me watch her play around. Atrocious boredom at its supreme, and with less than a week for Sadogashima preparation, I was worried for our future just a tiny bit.

"What is this…? What am I looking at here!?" Outta nowhere, Yuuko-sensei screamed loudly.

"Jesus! What got you worked up, Yuuko?" I peeked above the book I was reading and came face to face with a professor doing her best to contain her anger. What rare sight to behold.

"I— I don't even know how it happened! 'What's that, Pinocchio? You want to be a real boy?' 'Sure! Why not! What is physics anyway!?' Said the universal magic lamp as it fucked me over!" Yuuko-sensei grabbed the first stack of paper she saw and fling it at me.

"Oh look at that! I just proved Newton's law; conservation of mass, energy, momentum and charge. There's also electromagnetism, photonics; and if I dig around a bit, general relativity is also in there. So how the actual fuck, did Kagami Sumika—!? Ggrraaa! Damn it!" Her anger and rage were completely baseless and caused mass confusion not for herself alone.

"Holy shit, woman! Fuck you doing!?" I immediately called her out for throwing a fit at her age.

"Okay… okay, I'm now officially done toying with these espers. Time for a big reveal to you, Shirogane. Have a seat and your all-knowing Yuuko-sensei will begin her lecture." She breathed in and out a few times to maintain her composure.

"The anticipation is killing me… slowly… from inside my guts, let's go!" Anything that could make time move faster was good at the moment.

"We'll start from the basics; you know what espers are and how they're made, right?"

"People with subpar superpowers born from Russian washing machines who are all shut-in weirdos!" I answered immediately.

"Close enough, I count that as correct. Moving on, did you know the 00 unit is capable of hacking, controlling and rewriting electronic devices by simply thinking about it?"

"Uh-huh, it's very helpful many times of the week." Especially when she unlocked the girl's bathroom door for me, good times were had.

"Well done so far. Think about this for a minute. Why, for some reason, was the sentient, but inorganic 00 unit also able to manipulate the minds of other espers? Why do you think that is?"

"Aarrrr… because all espers are secretly computers…?" How was I supposed to know anyway?

"Because she made the leap from a quantum computer to a biological processing brain." If sensei said that using any less solemnity, I'd have laughed instead.

"Wait, wait, wait. You're saying that Sumika is a HUMAN AGAIN!?" That was something which never happened in my past, ever.

"Exactly, and it pretty much ruins modern physics as we know it. What we have is a pseudo-life form constructed from a hundred percent non-carbon materials with an imported computer turning into a human… which is complete bullshit! We're flying this rock away from sci-fi and gunning for the nearest fantasy planet where magical girls are born from making a contrac—!"

Yuuko-sensei suddenly stopped talking entirely, her freshly risen emotion crashed down when her expression changed to genuine shock and revelation. While I was still talking my sweet time understanding how Sumika turned back to being a human, she already had a new concept in mind.

"That's what she said! I can't believe I missed it until now!" Rushing fanatically, Yuuko-sensei tapped away on her keyboard again with sweat leaking down her forehead.

"Sensei! What's going on!? Sorry but I never experienced this stuff before!" Even I was caught up in her pace and started worrying.

"Oh…my god—! This's it! She- she started recording abnormal neural oscillation pattern after that day! Th-that is impossible…!" Yuuko-sensei collected herself after minutes upon minutes of focused mouse action.

"We good now, Yuuko? We off the hype now?" Even more time had to pass for sensei to rewind back as a normal person again.

"Yeah… yeah, I can think logically still… good. Anyway, this shit's gonna take years to explain in detail, you listen carefully, alright?"

"No problem, this's sounding very important." I rested back on her sofa as sensei pulled her seat to get a good view on her big screen.

"First of all, I created the 00 unit morning of October 25, 2001; at eight forty-five O'clock. That's when the real Kagami Sumika died, you know this?"

"Sure do, I'm used to that." In my heart, it made absolutely no difference to me whether she was Sumika or the 00 unit.

"This's her registered brain wave right afterwards." I was shown two graphs, one had many dots and the other had a waving line.

"Cool, nice drawing you got there. I'm clueless to what they mean, I can't read neural charts."

"As you shouldn't, but look again, this one's different." So another slide was displayed. The two pictures appeared fundamentally similar to one another, although the latter had dots and lines more close resemble brain wave diagrams seen in movies.

"Okay, another cool picture. You drew this, sensei?" I only joked around to lax our tense mood, it wasn't doing much though.

"This one's taken on December 17, 2001; around eleven PM. You know what else happened on December 17? I helped Kagami and Yashiro integrate Prafka into their nervous systems, all her readings look like this ever since."

"So you're saying Prafka turned her into human?" Easy words were my friend in this situation.

"No, that's not how science works. Prafka is a mental ability, not genetic altering device. That night, Kagami integrated Prafka under half an hour; Yashiro took three as the best Soviet created esper. That Kagami, whose quantum brain now holds the entirety of her central nervous system created this… herself."

"…Let me rephrase this for you, so you're saying that Sumika… made herself a brain?"

"Not exactly, she turned her quantum computer into a brain. Yeah, she did that." What was I supposed to say? What could I say in this situation?

Should I be happy; that Sumika is a real person again? Or maybe be just as bewildered as Yuuko-sensei for witnessing something not physical possible? I mean; fuck science, right? I honest didn't know what to feel about this; even as a time traveller who has seen end of the world repeatedly, I still got no comments to make.

"The personality of Kagami Sumika… created a brain out of her quantum computer." That was reality; that was our truth.

—

For another two hours, sensei never once took her eyes off the monitor. Since Sumika was still asleep with her friends, Yuuko-sensei searched high and low within her data to mine out any traces of hint leading to the explanation of Sumika.

She found none, nothing at all.

"Kouzuki Yuuko, please stop. We live in a world with aliens trying to chew off our faces every single day, I don't know how having a person come back to life is that surprising." But it was; I just couldn't say it now.

"Agggrraa! Fuuuuucccck! Let's move on! I don't wanna think about this!" That was quick; perhaps Yuuko-sensei just remembered she was a responsible grownup of society.

"Thank you, Professor. No use racking our head over this."

"So anyway, that's why she can control other espers. Because the abilities from her programming are emanating to the biological field, meaning she's a literal mutant or something. I don't even know anymore." Great, superwoman Sumika shall be a fantasy no longer.

"We can test to see how far her abilities can take her; worst- or best case scenario. Kagami could theoretically control, read, and influence the mind of every carbon being on this planet."

"Holy fuck… that'll make her like what… god?" What a development indeed.

"I honestly have no idea, Shirogane. I can't even make a joke at this point. Let's just ignore that huge problem and keep going for now. Next is Prafka, something I can at least understand properly." More power to her then.

"I'm not explaining this though, way too much shit to cover. Look, one second is one page, font size is twelve, all Russian." Sensei clicked a few buttons to activate the screen mounted on the wall, and just like she said, pages upon pages of documents were flashing by one sheet per second.

We sat for a good five minutes, staring at unreadable words.

"The entire flight back I was studying this. I'm not clarifying it; not for you, not for anyone." I would do the same in her position.

"Okay, I'll allow it. Give me the kid version of Prafka."

"Esper ability, triggered in the brain with any good catalyst; makes the Eishi a better pilot every level it goes up by, has a total of ten levels. At level ten, the Eishi manifest clouds known as the Nastroyka Effect which gives them super good piloting. Got it?"

"Understood." Simple and easy led the way.

"Bigger the cloud, stronger the ability. Kagami blazed up Yukon, so she's super strong and stuff. In fact, she's so strong that Prafka allows her to regulate espers who also have their Prafka on; and that is on top of already being able to control espers." Poor Sestina sisters and Barchenowa, their lives were about to be miserable.

"Fortunately, she doesn't seem to notice this power herself. Like you said, she had no idea how her body got switched with the twin's."

"So do you know how it happened?"

"Yeep, it was something like this: 'her boobs are so big! I wish my boobs are that big! If my boobs are that big then Takeru-chan will fondle me more! Yaay!' How about that? I can only guess from looking at her computer recording but sounds close enough." Repeatedly, I smacked myself with the hardcover in my hands.

"Euuuurrr… it's not my fault."

"I know, the person known as Kagami Sumika is… for the lack of a better word, simple-minded." I couldn't even argue against that in the slightest.

"Yeah. She dumb, man, she dumb!"

"So that pretty much solves most of our problems currently, Yashiro and the twins' conduct all can be justified as being under the influence of Kagami's set of thoughts." So everybody was all super happy due to Sumika's personality. I chuckled softly at this idea.

"What's the plan then? What're we gonna do with Godmika?"

"As much as I want you to fuck her brains out; literally and fugitively, right now you must, absolutely must keep her under control. The hyper ceramic I gave you and her limiter can only prevent her mind-effect for so long, she's just too much of a monster."

"Amazing, totally amazing." When did Sumika not cause me a world of trouble?

"Although you should go sleep with her, readings indicate she's also sexually deprived. Here's a good one, did you know she was masturbating for an hour on your way to Yukon? Non-stop, topped off six times. Go do her, that's an order." Apparently, 'make love not war' was still a usable slogan.

"What else should I know?"

"Urrm… Kagami's a Soviet Army Major now, did you know that?"

"No. No I fucking DIDN'T! WHAT!? She outranks ME!? WHAT THE FUCK!?" For some reason, that upset me a lot more than anything we talked about.

"Jeez boy, calm down. It's just a formality so the Socialist Party can hand over a Squadron of Su-47s. It's for our Total Eclipse plan."

"Our… Total Eclipse plan, Yuuko? Ours?"

"Yeah, I took it off Sandek's hands, he was going nowhere anyway. Guy was happy as long as we have results. He's still the co-leader of the plan. I'm the supplier, kinda." Classic Yuuko-sensei, taking what she wanted when she wanted it.

"What're the Su-47s for?"

"We talked about how the 00 unit controls machinery like part of her body, right?" It was back in my earliest loops but I did remember.

"Yep, yep. Go on."

"Now, with enough mental maaagick thingys, Kagami should be able to connect to multiple machines simultaneously. Espers under the influence of Prafka can link to one another via telepath, so can you see where I'm going with this?"

"Ahha, so if Sumika activates Prafka on the Berkuts, she can have then fly around like her Funnels?" Sensei probably didn't understand that.

"Funnels…? Hum, so that was transferred memory as well. You're infecting me a lot these days, Shirogane."

"What you on about now?" That sounded unrelated.

"Casualty leaking through, they're hitting me pretty heavy. It was a good anime, by the way, someday I'll come and laugh at you." Her meme connected two and two together.

"Haa… whatever. So Sumika's getting her own set of Berkuts to pilot? Can she really do it?" Out track was guided back on rails.

"Yes, we'll be officially trying this out during 21st. But I already ran a bunch of tests beforehand and the results are good, Kagami is capable. She can create their ultimate dream team of esper controlled Berkuts, except it'll just be her and remote-controlled machines."

"Just to check, Professor Kouzuki Yuuko, why are you doing all this?"

"For the good of humanity, Shirogane Takeru. That's my objective." She said it; so simply, so quickly. Without hesitation, without delay. Yuuko-sensei believed what she was doing to be just, so I also decided to support her as I was.

"Good. By the way, so why did you want the twins?"

"Right, I planned to use them as conductors to trigger Kagami's control ability. But since she got it anyway without their help, the Alaska trip is bit of a waste. Albeit the publicity stunt is a good one, you don't mind if I expose your team's name, do you?" I was seeing where she was heading now.

"It's fine, I do enjoy being respected all around."

"I'll market your team as the world's saviour, Shirogane. Do you think you're ready for this kind of affliction?" Sensei asked me frankly, fully prepared to take no as an answer.

"Anytime and always, ma'am. This world isn't going down with me in it, not this time, not again." There was no choice to begin with, I will save everyone. I will have my happy end.

"That's what I expect from you, Shirogane. Operation 21st is in three days, you have to be ready for this. Isumi's team already ran numerous simulations for this day, I'll send you the details later. Get going Shirogane, this'll be your stage."

"Roger that."

"One last thing, one final mock battle in coming up against the Valkyries, but this one's a bit different. Check the hangar for a couple of surprises, think of it as your early Christmas present, kiddo."

 **PX**

"Takeru-chan… I'm really sorry for causing you so much trouble!" Awww, apologetic Sumika was cute too. I wouldn't mind see this side of her more often.

"Naaah, we had fun. It was relaxing to chase you around for half an hour." I patted Sumika's red hair as she leaned closely to my shoulder. We had some time after lunch before the rest of my team gathered for another update. It was just the two of us now, her esper friends were taken care of by Bridges.

"I'm determined to grow my body so it can be just like Cryska-chan's!"

"You're an android, woman. You can't grow."

"Geeeee! Thanks for shattering my dreams, Takeru-chan!" Were there any dreams for me to break in the beginning?

"So how do you feel about it? Having Prafka solve every problem for you?"

"It's scary, I don't like who I'm becoming." She replied so innocently, Sumika's eyes glimmered a bitter colour unfitting for her cute, adorable face. It wasn't her fault this liability must be pushed onto her, that was just the way of our lives.

"I'm sorry to make you do this, Sumika." Ever so rarely, I displayed my kindness to my most precious lover.

"I know, Takeru-chan. I'm willing to go through this for you, please don't waste my feelings. I'll protect you, no matter what happens."

It didn't suit her; drowning in bloodlust should never have been anywhere close to Sumika's personality. She was forced into this, to be a tool for the future of humanity. She offered me what I could never hope to repay so simply, like a choice based on instinct.

"And I'll save this world for you, I will create miracles." Sumika belonged to me; she shall be by my side as I conquer our destiny.

 **Author's note**

I was dead, now I'm back. Long chapter, short AN.

BETA done by chad001, I thought of a joke but watching America's election just ruined any sense of humour left in my body. Fucking Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton… G.G Murica, had a good run.


	38. Doritos & Mountain Dew

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 22, 2001**

 **Briefing room**

"First off, self-introductions for the Valkyries. My team haven't met all of your people yet, Isumi. Since they received their wounded back from the hospital, right now's a good time for everyone to know everyone." I waved at Isumi for her to go ahead.

"I'm Captain Isumi Michiru of A-01 9th Squadron Valkyries. I've seen all your handiwork during 12/5, the XM3 trial and Op Moon Smasher. Even though you all recently graduated from cadets, I can't say what you did was amateurish. So we'll treat you as proper members of A-01 from now on, no cutting slacks."

"Yes, ma'am." It was unpleasant to see Isumi get the salute normally reserved for me only, although she did do a good job helping us out until now.

"Let's start the introduction then. First in line is 1st Lt. Suzumiya Haruka, our CP officer. She'll also assist your team in organization since the Archangels don't have a Command Post."

That was the end of new information from my perspective. The gang talked a bit with each other and the Valks during their greetings, it was mostly things I already knew.

—

"Straight to the good stuff we go, today's training session will be our final anti-TSF mock battle for a while. Got a big op coming up and assets are being moved around. Because literally everyone on base is dying to know, we're figuring out which team is better once and for all." I passed the torch to Isumi after a quick giggle.

"If you haven't guessed by now, it's a simulated exercise between us the 9th Squadron and the 13th. We both have been busy cleaning up after Professor Kouzuki for a good while so this's an opportunity to finally settle our score, you excited, Hayase?"

"Hoorah, Captain! I can already taste their tears!" Hayase pumped her fists in a cheerful fashion.

"That's Marines, stupid. Don't go using other people's catchphrases." I already got a head-start on our insult game.

"I ain't taking shit from you, Shirogane! Just be ready to have an extra pair of diapers!"

"Oooohhh!" Everyone synced their encouraging yelps.

"I'm already prepared, put them on before we go in, Hayase. Try hard panties are so coming on."

"Jesus, enough! I swear to god you're all children. Being this excited is good, Hayase. Just don't completely ruin your chance at a first impression." Isumi cut our fire-splitting contest short.

"Get told, woman."

"Shut up, you!" Good times all around.

"For our mission, it'll be a game of head-hunter instead of regular TDM. Like chess, kill the other side's boss for victory; so that'll be either Isumi or me. Whichever team can bring down the other's king first wins. One life only, no respawns."

"Also, to balance out our teams. Archangel will use their set of specialized TSFs. To confirm again, Shirogane; that's your YF-23, Mitsurugi's Type-00 and Kagami's Su-47, right?" It was a smart move to inquiry us for intelligence even before the war begin, Isumi casually asked me to reaffirm the rules.

"Ah, those units will be present. And I won't use my wide-range hacking on the Arondight, proximity jamming only." It was important to make our battle as fair as possible.

"Good, our advantage is nine members and Suzumiya on CP. She can provide real-time updates and alter our formations. Anyone got a disagreement to make?" Isumi spoke to a crowd of silent soldiers.

"Okay then, what else do we have to go through?" I had a dribble of clue as to what we were doing, Yuuko-sensei told me very little before tossing my team in here.

"Time limit is one hundred twenty minutes on mission clock. In case of a draw, whichever team took the least damage wins. With JIVES, this'll be as close to real combat as we're gonna get." Isumi made a few more points for both teams to take in.

"Also, JIVES got a few more additional upgrades on top of the fancy configuration it always ran. It can now simulate armour damage down to .02 seconds of error on impact and detail to two millimetres." That was news I had no idea on.

"My team was the first to use this new model so that's another advantage for us. Overall though, the simulation is probably the realest thing next to actual combat. Paintball exercises are getting retired." Poor, poor paintballs shall never see the light of day ever again.

"What Block are we on now? Any OS update we should know?"

"Block 288 for XM3, rolled in three days ago, just before we left." Isumi answered again.

"We're on 288 already? My team's running with 269 for Yukon."

"I actually don't know how it's named, jumped straight from that to 288. Doesn't make sense." Some people really shouldn't name anything in their life.

"Alright, if that's it for explanation, we're good to go! The exercise will begin at 1:30 AM; all of Training Ground No.2 is set for us. Valkyries on me, move it fast, people!"

"Understood!" So merrily, the team of subtle lesbians (Minus Kashiwagi) left the briefing room fist.

"We're hopping out too then, Archangels. They can have the PX, gather by the hanger."

 **Suzumiya Haruka**

 **PX**

"What-cha looking for, Muuu~naaa~kaaa~taaa~?"

"Wha—! Ah! No-nothing at all!"

"Don't lie, don't lie! You were just looking for your boyfriend, weren't you!"

"N-NO! I know he's not around here!"

To Haruka, today must have been an unrevealed reversal day. Because never in the history of A-01 had Mitsuki ever went on the attack against Munakata, poor girl was flustered like never before and constantly avoiding eye-contact.

"Ara, ara~ Misae-san, when did you get somebody without telling me~? It's making me jealous, you see~" Relentlessly attacking wasn't reserved for Mitsuki alone, Kazama didn't let this chance slip.

"Emm…! Just what's happening…?" Many of the other Valkyries members were left in the dark much like Haruka.

"Listen people! Short version is Munakata has good reasons to believe her imaginary boyfriend is somewhere on this base, that's it. Stop snooping around and get thinking!" Capt. Isumi had a different idea for their activity during lunchtime.

The rest of the girls all eventually sat down and calmed down from their paparazzo mode. Once everyone gathered as a group on the table, Capt. Isumi did a quick headcount before turning on a PDA displaying a register of the 9th Squadron.

"First thing first, we'll make sure everyone knows what role they'll be playing. With nine members, it might be a bit difficult to balance out every role, so it's important to know your strength and weakness as to not cause trouble for the team. Hayase, what're you running with?"

"Classic Storm Vanguard, siiiir! That's why I'm Storm Vanguard 1!" Mitsuki said stirringly.

"Munakata, how about you?"

"Same as you, Capt. Isumi. Gun Interceptor." The team leader nodded, acknowledging her answer.

"C'mon everyone, report." She demanded for the rest to state as well.

"I'll go first, 2nd Lt. Kazama, role's Blast Guard."

"Kashiwagi here, I'm an Impact Guard, I snipe people."

"Er, 2nd Lt. Suzumiya, I'm on Gun Sweeper."

"2nd Lt. Ts-Tsukiji! I'm also Gun Sweeper!"

"Takahara, Strike Vanguard."

"Then I'm last, 2nd Lt. Asakura, Rush Guard."

Capt. Isumi smiled confidently, Haruka could see how she felt glad that all of her underlings were understanding of their duty. As for herself, it required no reminder for any of the Valkyries that she was their CP Operator.

"Good! That's the same role we'll be using this time. Now we can move on and consider the actual battle." The Captain then tapped around on her hand-held.

"First point to mention, this isn't like the last mock exercise we had. Last time it was a scenario where both teams played BETA and we trained like that, but… for this one, it's purely for the purpose of beating the other team." This was unlike the regular goal of A-01, Haruka realized how serious the Captain found this battle to be from her mood.

"No mercy! We're fighting for the win! It'll be shameful if us Valkyries lose to a Squad of less trained, newly graduated Eishis!" Mitsuki was still spreading around her condescending viewpoint.

"Anyway, with that said; we'll consider their formation based on the most strategic position possible, they'll do the same with us. Takahara, you haven't been around since Niigata, got an idea?" The Captain demanded one of their recently recovered members to brainstorm as she passed her tablet over.

"Errm… judging by their organization, the 13th Squadron have an equal number of close-range, crowd control, a bit heavy on middle to long range and only one artillery unit. So I believe their formation to be like this." The pony-tailed Second Lieutenant drew down what she supposed to be their most likely development.

"I see, I see. A well balanced strategy with Vanguards up front and recon behind back, that's a classic. Your thoughts, 1st Lt. Suzumiya?" Haruka was unexpectedly called to attention.

"…If they're any other team, this's probably the ideal formation to take." Speaking with confidence, Haruka knew things wouldn't be so easy.

"Eh? What do you mean, First Lieutenant?" Asakura, another Eishi freshly released from the hospital asked.

"Their team leader, that Shirogane is a nutjob."

"Seconded, asshole's totally insane. He absolutely won't do that." As per usual, Mitsuki and Munakata only agreed when the topic came to Shirogane.

"So, with that in mind; us not considering their formation at all is the best logical choice, because relying on a preconceived plan while fighting his team will bite us hard. We'll discuss their TSF instead." Capt. Isumi took back her device and clicked around some more.

"Look here, the modified American YF-23 Black Widow II, aka Arondight prototype. We went over its capabilities and how to best counter it last time. Make sure you remember to never let it out of your sight once spotted and never engage solo. He'll literally rip you apart."

Some of the new soldiers gulped fearfully at their Captain's warning as she swiped right to alter the slide for the showing of another TSF.

"Su-47 Berkut, Soviet origin. This unit is recovered by 1st Lt. Kagami from their Yukon Operation and is now her personal TSF. We don't have too much details on this machine since the mechanics haven't went through it yet, but remember it's melee centric and don't get in close." Another page flip displayed the 13th Squadron's last machine.

"Type-00R Takemikazuchi, belongs to 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi Meiya. Her background is still technically classified, although if you can't tell who she is there isn't much we can do. She is their third and probably last CQC fighter, not counting Shirogane."

"It was difficult to tell based on their unit organization but most of the Archangels are melee heavy fighters, aren't they?" Tsukiji popped up with a question.

"Looking at their TSF models would lead you to think that, wouldn't it? But now we should study their profiles. First up, 1st Lt. Yashiro Kasumi…"

For a very long time afterwards, they Valkyries were heavily engaged in debating and discussing the best potential tactic to use on the Archangels. Poor Haruka's meal was cold by the time they finished.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Hanger**

"Tama… that's a giant box of giant senbei, like- that's fucking huuuuuge, girl." I couldn't hold one in one hand, they were the size of Frisbees, it was pure madness she clasped in her arms.

"This's a gift from papa! He sent it to me while we were away on the mission!"

"Huh, how nice. How much you got in there?"

"About sixteen pieces, and I still have five bags left!" That took care of my snacking problem for about half a year.

"You mind sharing some with everybody then?"

"Sure!"

—

"So-munom, a-nomonom wa-nomonom so-nomtthinnom?"

"wh-Munch, ar-munch? Muuunch, munnnnch."

"Nom, nom? Nom-nom-nom!"

"Crun, crun… crunch, crunch."

"Aha-Chomp-chomp-chomp— chaaamp!?"

"Moooo! Moooo!"

"Nuum~! Noooom~?"

This shit wasn't working. Also, was there a fucking cow? Because I swear I heard a cow.

—

"Okay, my parents may have had a point when they said to not talk and chew at the same time. Senbeis are great though, don't forget to thank Tama."

"—thaaank yooou, Taaamaaa!" Like kindergarteners, my girls all addressed our team cat-woman at once.

"Kasumi, time."

"T-minus three hours, thirty-five minutes and twenty-two seconds." That level of accuracy wasn't necessary, but appreciated nonetheless.

"Goddamn it, we gotta kill three and a half more. We already covered specs and weaponry, what else to talk about?"

"You sure we can use this, Takeru-san!? I-I mean- all this stuff is like really expensive gear, isn't?" Tama cutely asked for my permission again.

"Ayyyye! Y'all be using this from now on, get used to it."

"Awwwwseommme! I'm sooooo EXCITED!" As Mikoto should be.

"This is an anticipated fight, right?" Ayamine asked.

"Sure, we weren't around for most of it but many of the dudes on base are hyping it up like mad. Finally finding out which of the base's top-dogs are… topper… gets people thrilled."

"We should broadcast it."

"…We really should, that's genius." So I made preparations towards that.

—

"Yuuko-sensei, how's the vinyl on them? Give me a rating for those babies."

"Hummm… I say a 7/10, Americans make it better."

"I see, your fetish is none of my concern so I'll say no more. Although I really am shocked to see these ones here so early."

"That's a fact, ain't it? Yoroi did his magic on the Ministry of Technology for me and I got a good deal in with the US Defence, Soviets were also surprisingly fast on their delivery."

"All's right with the world then. Okaaaay! I'll file you the data after we take these beauties out for a test drive, you watching us or what?"

"Sure, I'll join Suzumiya in the mobile CP. See how things go."

 **Hayase Mitsuki**

 **Training Ground No.2**

"—Valkyries 2, where're you? We're behind schedule." Isumi issued a warning for the blue-haired girl.

"—just got done loading inventory, sorry for the delay." On her mark, Mitsuki's Shiranui touched down in her place. She was Storm Vanguard 1 of the Valkyries, the front most post had always belonged to her.

"—this's your Professor on neutral announcer duty here, all teams get in starting position. Combat simulation starting in fifty seconds, remember the rules of engagement. Other than that, go wild. I'm out." Vice-Commander Kouzuki dropped in to announce her message and left quickly after.

"—Valkyries Mum to all units; real-time data-link online, reaffirm your battle formation statistics. Updating unit status and marker."

"—Valkyries 1, copy. People, listen up! Formations will be just as we discussed earlier. A Platoon will be Akane, Tsukiji, Takahara led by Hayase. B Platoon will be Kazama, Kashiwagi and Asakura lead by Munakata. I'll patrol within our radar detection range."

"Their goal will obviously be to take me down, so either they'll engage our main unit to push through our defence or a flanker can come for me. If that happens, A Platoon can come to my aid and B Platoon can pick off their reinforcement."

"—playing soft defence isn't really that good of an idea, ahaa… I feel like they're already winning just because of that." Commented Munakata as she relocated herself to the front of her Flight. Mitsuki had the same feeling; Shirogane's team was too wild to be predicted.

"—that's the wrong way of thinking, Misae-san. If we let them beat us mentally, then there won't be any victory to speak of. Let's cheer up, everyone. Logistically, we're more likely to win." Sending in some needed boost to morale, Kazama praised up the team.

"Valkyries Mum to all units, combat simulation beginning in twenty seconds. I believe in you, everybody! Good luck!" Haruka was also there to provide spiritual support.

"Exactly, people! Don't forget the creed of the Valkyries! Recite our motto!"

"—achieve your mission with all your might! Despair not till your last breath! Make your death count!" In unison, every member of A-01 Valkyries shouted the lines that bound together their team.

"Simulation beginning in five… four… three… two… one! All units, weapons free, you have consent."

"Let's go kick some greenhorn asses! Valkyries, MOVE OUT!"

—

"—Valkyries 2, forward position secured. Reading nothing on sensor."

"—Valkyries Mum, copy. Updating map. Currently battlefield coverage is sixty-eight percent, still negative on hostile spotted." From her voice, even Haruka was getting a bit uneasy.

"—are they really playing hard defence? Like seriously, is nobody gonna leave their spawn?" Munakata protested about the lack of action she was getting.

This image of the Valkyries probing for targets was already very unnatural, especially since their opponent was the Archangels. Never in a million years would Mitsuki foresee her team gaining more than two-third map control and still not get a clue as to where the unfriendly TSFs were hiding.

"All units, keep your eyes peeled. It's impossible for them to run any further back, we should expect shots any second now, if they don't show up soon it'll be completely pointless to fall bac—"

"—sensors are picking something up! I'm reading tiny air waves! Somebody just fired by Sector J-12!" On cue, Mitsuki noticed a distortion in her mini-map. It was in the far-back of Archangel's starting location, proving how they never relocated too much.

"That's… ARTILLRY BARRAGE! Why isn't the AoE prediction coming through!?" Mitsuki's partner, Takahara shouted a warning.

And from the skies, it rained simulated death. Mortar missiles soared down, screaming furiously as they sliced open oxygen on their descend. There were many shells, too many to dodge.

And they multiplied; Mitsuki swore that's what she saw, every time the numbers doubled. Closer the bombs were, more bombs there were.

"What-the-fuck—! Get outta of the blast zone! MOVE IT!"

"No-not possible! They're just too much!"

"BRACE FOR IMPACT!"

The earth scorched, Mitsuki's view was burned to a crisp. Even if the fire was fake, she still felt like the skin of her body had melted away. Regardless, she pushed hard back on her sticks, ordering the Shiranui to charge ahead faster than the rest of the ordnance.

"Haa…! Haaa…! —Valkyries 1 to Valkyries Mum, give me a status report ASAP!" Haggardly came Isumi's voice, droplets of sweat were visible on her forehead.

"Valkyries Mum to all units, Valkyries 4 and 8 signals are lost, assumed K.I.A. Please check condition." Doing her absolute best to keep calm, Haruka spoke.

"This's Valkyries 3, can confirm. Fuck me, Kazama got toasted." Munakata didn't appear too happy to update her team.

"Same for Takahara, she's dead." Neither was Mitsuki when she announced what she saw to her right, a totally destroyed Type-94 laid in waste.

"All Platoons, spread out immediately. I'll stick with B team so get away from each other, we can't afford to get hit like that again, it was fortunate we only lost two."

"Hooooly shit, Captain. That wasn't a lucky shot, aright!? They clearly know where we are!" Storm Vanguard 1 found their situation to be unpleasant, not an exaggerated testimonial.

"Our HVT is within detection range, that's the only way for them to find us while we couldn't. Shirogane, bloody crazy bastard. Going solo like this, we'll make him pay." Isumi had a good understanding on how her team lost the first skirmish.

"What was that they shot!? It was like a hundred missiles!" Next in line for questioning was Akane.

"Not too sure. Looked like America's AIM-54 Phoenix, although there shouldn't be any units here capable of carrying that. Still, that was at least two-third a volley. Archangels only have one container, we shouldn't be hit like that again."

"Valkyries Mum to all units, friendly status confirmed; Valkyries 4 and 8 K.I.A. Hostile HVT is within two hundred metres radius, go for kill." And go for kill they did.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Mobile Command Post**

"SURPRISE, MOTHERFUCKER! The great and mighty Shirogane-sama has arrived!"

"AHHHAAA! T-t-t-tthat! Ca-ca-c-CAPTAIN!?" Stunned out of her skin, Suzumiya smashed her jaw into the floor as she performed a backflip over her seat. Landing head first and creating a loud echo on impact. Russian judges were gonna have to give that one a 0/10.

"Heh, Shirogane. I almost thought you were joking." Yuuko-sensei, on the other hand was super nonchalant about my entrance, almost as if she prophesied my unbelievable action.

"You want publicity? I bring you publicity, let's get the stream started!"

"Right, did you setup the flat-screen in the PX beforehand?"

"Yeep, we're all ready to go!" I was personally a bit hyped to get some promotion for my team and myself.

"W-WAIT! P-p-please wait a minute, Capt. Shirogane! Er… Errrm…! Wha-w-what're you DOING HERE!?" Physically flustered Suzumiya was losing her shit, she stared at me with almost tear-filled eyes ready to cry. A finger was weakly pointed my way as the CP Operator fragilely stood back on her feet.

"I thought I'd drop by and see what's going on, spread some love your way."

"No— NO! That's not what I meant! You're the Archangel team's LEADEEEEER! You should be in your TSF instead of MESSING AROUND here!" Those were valid criticisms from Suzumiya.

"Naaah, my team's got this in the bag. They don't need me."

"Yes, THEY DO! Please go back to your machine! You're cheating the match by being here!" That was just a fat, flat lie.

"Not true, my machine is still in the combat area. I got out before the game started and have been around here ever since."

"Wha— w-w-what're you…! Why're you doing this!?"

"For the LOLs, that's good enough answer? Besides, my team is basically one man down like this, surely you wouldn't want me to join back into the fray, right? Seeing as… you know, we killed two of you already."

"B-b-but—" Being speechless was the proper action to take, and Suzumiya chose wisely.

"If I'm here, that means there's nobody controlling my 23, so it's pretty much a free kill for anyone who even sneezes on my machine. And I ain't even helping them here, that sounds like a good deal?"

"Errr… errr! V-Vice-Commander! Is this allowed!?"

"Sure, I don't see why not. Shirogane's handicapping his own people so it's not like you got anything to lose, maybe a bit of mental pressure, but that's it." Yuuko-sensei foresaw the potential of amusement from my action.

"Ehhhh!? Bu-b-but—"

"C'mon, Suzumiya! Update your team! Tell them I'm not even there! Let's GO! NOW!" My booming voice was enough to scare Suzumiya back to her job.

"—t-this is Valkyries Mum to all units! The HVT is not within your detection range! Repeat, the HVT has not moved since beginning of the match!"

"That was a short side-track, let's get this show going." Sensei had finished all preparations including her makeup for our face-cams. The time to represent was now.

"Three… two… one… we're live."

"—every bored asshole sitting in the PX! Welcome to the first ever live JIVES combat broadcast! I am Captain Shirogane Takeru of STF A-01 13th Squadron! Here with the approval and involvement of the one-and-only, Professor Kouzuki!"

Clap, clap, clap, clap.

"—thank you very much, everybody. Yokohama's Vice-Commander, Kouzuki Yuuko here. This mock battle commentary brought up you by Alternative IV, who pays for your everyday expenses. Now let's move on; what exactly are we showing the people, Captain?"

Smiling naturally, relaxingly and most of all, assuredly into the camera, sensei had a natural talent for public speaking. Although this shouldn't be remarkably at all, I still found it enjoyable how easily she fit in with my flow. Almost like we had done this routine many times in the past.

"Yes, yes! This's a simple game of head-hunter between the A-01 9th Squadron, commonly known as the Valkyries, against my own 13th. On that note, there's no need to worry about my absence, the game shall progress as is! Of which we're already late on!"

"Indeed, please give our audiences a quick rundown of the pervious engagement, Captain."

"Well, from fifteen minutes ago when this fight started, Valkyries had lost two units to long-range barrage. It was a dead accurate strike, delivered with perfection if I do say so myself." Brag rights were mine.

"But it should be wise to note that when the artillery strike hit, the area of coverage from that bombardment was much larger than standard Type-92 missiles. What was that about?"

"Good question, professor. While I'm sure you know, I'll say this again for our watchers. It's interesting that we employed a new, in development missile system imported from the US Army. And its effectiveness is—"

"EHHH?! CAPTAIN! You guys were using WHAT?!" Suzumiya felt like cutting me off as she pleased, jumping into the camera view and not properly doing her job.

"Everyone, this's Valkyries' CP Operator, 1st Lt. Suzumiya Haruka. Anyway, to answer your question, we were recently supplied with a new type of multipurpose cluster-munition warhead. They're meant to be the spiritual successor of the AIM-54 Phoenix, the AIM-144 Jericho." Yuuko-sensei explained.

I had to credit sensei solely for this one; I had no idea how she got the Americans to cough up their new prototype toy with one trip to Yukon, but she somehow brought us these new amazing looking weapons for testing. Seeing its effect from JIVES simulation was already making me satisfied, couldn't wait for actual usage.

"Although there's a small problem with these new warheads, they're meant to only be equipped by the US F-22A Raptors or F-35 Lighting II. Also the production cost is like suuuuper crazy high, making it only affordable to very limited factions." Sounded like something affordable for us.

"Wait… wait, Vice-Commander Kouzuki… did you just say… don't tell me—!" I was glad for Suzumiya when she picked up on that little detail of ours.

"You heard what I said, there was no mistake." In a spilt second, Suzumiya's face was shadowed by a sheet of perplexity and anxiety. And just in time, her earpiece buzzed with a message from her teammates.

"—to Valkyries 1! Did not copy, resay your last! They have WHAT on the field!?"

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Training Ground No.2**

"—what the hell! That's a goddamn F-22 Raptor!"

"—this shit ain't fucking faiiiiir! This wasn't what they're supposed to have!"

"—Valkyries Mum, we're under sniper fire from a hostile F-22 Raptor. That's the scout unit." Constant sniper shots flying by Michiru's head were getting on her nerves; this definitely wasn't planned for ahead of time.

After losing Kazama and Takahara, the 9th went searching for what they thought was Shirogane's YF-23 hiding inside their radar range. What they found simply wasn't him, instead an US stealth fighter was retreating while trying to pick them off.

"—that guy's so accurate! Can you hit it, Haruko?" Suzumiya junior yelled at her friend to return fire.

"—it's moving too fast, and also running away as well. On my mark, suppressive fire at my designation, let me see if I can tag it with a tracer."

"Is that okay, Captain!?" Akane sought Michiru's approval.

"Good idea, Kashiwagi. Hit it fast."

"Akane, on me."

"Roger!" And the blue-haired sharpshooter fired.

"Dart out… yes! I got it." A good testament to her skills was put on perfect display as the team's Impact Guard only shot one round, which stuck itself to that Raptor's leg armour.

"Good mark! All units, here's what we're gonna do. We'll push up and hit it from three sides; A Platoon can spilt to two Elements and flank, my team will go up main street on Grid F-2 and suppress that shooter. Watch out for ambushes, move it!" Michiru sincerely hoped for her plan to work.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Mobile Command Post**

"This's clearly cheating, Capt. Shirogane! You said there're only three specialized TSF!"

"No, no. That's what Isumi said, all I said was those three TSFs will be participating. I didn't promise rest of our unit will be 94s, you people assumed that." This was me being an absolute bitch as taught by Yuuko-sensei.

"Professor! This isn't fair at all!"

"Awww, are you a little upset, 1st Lt. Suzumiya? I'll say Shirogane's tactic is very underhanded, but it's also your team's fault for not asking thoroughly." And of course, sensei wouldn't go against her own logic.

"Then what else are you not telling us, Captain!?"

"Guess I can introduce you the pilot, that's 2nd Lt. Tamase Miki in the Raptor right there. You should really tell your teammates before another one may or may not show up."

"UUU…! You BULLY! —Valkyries Mum to all units! Hostile Raptor is confirmed to be Archangel 8! Additional stealth fighters are almost certainly present!" Defeated by me verbally, Suzumiya had no choice but to return to her duty.

"Well, that was a fun distraction, won't you agree, Professor Kouzuki?"

"Absolutely, Capt. Shirogane. And to all our viewers out there; yes, STF A-01 does own at least one F-22 unit. I'm not able to give out anymore details regarding the Raptor, but it belongs to the UN, don't worry about anything else." Sensei reassured our audience while also giving them a warning.

"And for its Eishi, 2nd Lt. Tamase Miki. Callsign Archangel 8 on my team, she plays the role of Rush Guard, this gives her two standard AMWS-21and one single-fire AMWS with extended barrel and stock. Her sniper rounds also come with gird-fin for increased stability and range." I was quick to fill everyone in.

"2nd Lt. Tamase is no doubt the designated marksman for your team, Captain. It's probably safe to say she's one of the top ten snipers in Japan. With the setting out of our way, let's get back to this fight." Sensei drove the focus back.

"Let us. It looks like the Valks are working up, they got three groups all moving in on Tamase. This's a valid tactic as long as they watch their backs carefully, a counter flank could ruin them instantly."

"Exactly, although tagging the lone Second lieutenant was a fantastic idea, the sticky beacon won't last forever. If team Valkyries don't kill her right away, their effort in rushing is gonna be pointless." Another good note by Yuuko-sensei.

"The overhead map shows us Hayase is very close to the sniper's position, she's also flying solo here since her Element partner, Takahara was killed during the artillery strike earlier."

"1st Lt. Hayase is a very talented individual, as I'm sure everyone on base knows about her, the infamous Storm Vanguard 1 of the Valkyries. So having a lone-wolf job shouldn't be that much of a bother for her. On the other hand, 2nd Lt. Tamase rarely fly solo, or ever. This'll be an interesting showdown."

"I do wonder how she'll do against the Raptor. They're about to make contact any seconds now…" Up here in the Command Centre, sensei and I were awaiting a good fight.

"C'mon… Hayase, round that cornnner… and Boom! Coming outta cover and greeted immediately by a 120 which she blocked with her reactive shield! That reaction! That speed! And now they both kicked into high gear and are dogfighting through the town!" I had to take a breather.

"The First Lieutenant is already chasing! She's got 2nd Lt. Tamase on defence, huh? That's quite a feat, but seeing how they're fighting it out, I can't say Valkyries 2 got the advantage here. In urban combat, Raptors still reign supreme with their advanced movement and mobility. She's got to really work for that kill if she wants to get back before hostile reinforcement pushes in."

"Indeed, indeed! Now both TSFs are lowering to the ground! Tama is laying down that coverage fire but Hayase just does not care! She's totally gunning for her! The Reactive Armour is soaking up the damage for her Shiranui!"

"Trying to use her environment as cover, it seems 2nd Lt. Tamase isn't simply running away. She is in fact getting farther and farther away from 1st Lt. Hayase's backup, at this rate she'll bait 1st Lt. Hayase right back to the Archangel controlled area." Sensei was pretty calm, as opposite to my ecstatic self.

"And she caught up! Hayase ditched her gun and drew her sword in an instant! Going for a stab on Tamase's machine! This isn't looking good for the Raptor, is it!? Tama's trying to get that distance but Hayase clearly knows how to put the pressu— WAIT! Wha—! Someone else fired!"

"Oh, wow! That was amazing! Just before her sword made contact, somebody shot a 120mm at the First Lieutenant. And she deflected it perfectly with her shield! Not just block; because that'll still kill her, she aimed the explosion away from herself using the shield's surface while also turning parallel to the shot's trajectory!"

"And she's not done yet! Straightaway after deflecting, Hayase threw her shield at the just-landed Tamase doing major frontal amour damage! If that shield was real, she just cost us half a Raptor! And would be charged with multiple count of property destruction! But since it isn't, that was fucking awesome!"

Neither Yuuko-sensei nor I was faking our enthusiasm, this was just like watching major league sports back in my old world, expect way more exciting and eye-popping. Also, Hayase was super good at what she does.

"You're right, Capt. Shirogane, this is fun."

"I know! It's great! Anyway, for some reason Hayase decides to not take cover and just keep going for Tama. How is she not worried about the shooter right now!? We need to switch to overhead view for a bette—"

"—MIIIITSSSURRRGIIII! You think I don't see your marker on my mini-map!? GET OVER HERE!" That wasn't one of us who just screamed at the top of her lung, no, absolutely not us.

"—1st Lt. Hayase, it is my honour to finally challenge you." And her opponent responded in the same manner.

"No…! WAY! Everybody in the PX! You heard that, all right!? That was spoken over the public channel! Hayase and Meiya have agreed to a duel! Ahhhha! I can't believe what I'm seeing!"

"Isn't this an interesting development!?"

"Hold on, hold on! I'm hearing someone in my earpiece! Ah! Mitsurugi just told Tamase to retire back to my TSF… and she agreed! This's a one-on-one in the truest sense! Mano-a-mano between two girls! What a good time to be alive!"

"Absolutely incredible, will our two fighters morally carry out their oaths or will they secretly call for help from their friends? No matter what outcome it could be, this's the beginning of a great swordfight no doubt!"

—

"—C'MON AND DIE! MITSURUGI!"

"—after you, 1st Lt. HAYASE!"

"Another heavy jab by Meiya! Bringing Hayase's effectiveness down to thirty-nine percent! Both fighters have sustained heavy damage to majority of their body parts! A few more solid hits are sure to bring down one of these TSF! The fight's so close to ending yet we still don't know who'll win!"

"She's charging in, 1st Lt. Hayase made the first move! And ready to answer that attack is of course 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi! They're going full speed at each other with no plans for intermission! This truly is their finale! Both sides are exhausted of options and armoury, a final showdown!"

"So close, SO CLOSE! They're about to cross each other! Any second– any second! NOW! —AND THEY'VE CUT! Both machines are unmoving and facing away just as you would expect from the end of any climax duel! And we wait… and wait… for JIVES to stop FUCKING LAGGING! AUUUGRRA!" Internet connection.

"Wa-w-wait! We can't say clearly from this angle! Rotate it! Get an adjacent of the Type-00!" Following sensei's advice, I turned out in-game camera to get a better view.

"Is that…?! Am I seeing this right!? Meiya's right arm is freaking gone! OUCH! And it's over there! Right by Hayase's feet! She's DONE IT! With only an empty rifle and her left retractable blade left, what else can Meiya do!?"

"—you're a good fighter, Mitsurugi! I'll acknowledge you! To beat me up this badly on your own is definitely an achievement in itself! Now don't move… so I can finish you off—"

"—it is my win." So fast, so swiftly, Meiya aimed.

"—ARRGGA! Did you jus—! FUCK! MITSURUGI—!"

"—I am honoured to have fought you." While I wasn't there to personally witness it, the PX probably erupted in screams of disbelief and astonishment. So did our Command Centre.

"Jesus. H. CHIRST! Get TURNED ON! Meiya's the fucking CHAMPION! Is this 911?! Because I would like to report a FUCKING MURDER!" I too, was completely in awe.

"Ahahahahahhahah! I didn't expect that! Hooo! What a reversal! Simply magnificent! Let's see that in slow-motion replay! Shall we?" Of course we were going to watch that again, I caught my breath as the buttons needed to rewind the recording was tapped.

"Oh… woooow! What do you even call this?! Brutal! Savage! Rekted! Professor Kouzuki. So what exactly transpired in those fractions of a second?"

"First, they're standing facing away from each other when 1st Lt. Hayase declared her win, because she saw the Takemikazuchi's arm on the ground. Now here, right here is when things changed. See that rifle on 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi's mount? It rose up and fired."

"How does that cause explosion which disorientated Hayase though? A single 120mm isn't that strong." By now, I did see what trick Meiya employed to pull off her win, but this explanation was for our listeners who couldn't see it live.

"One shell may not be enough, but a dozen 120s are good. See that? Concealed between her right arm and the retractable blade were a couple of 120mm mags, that's what she shot. She predicted 1st Lt. Hayase's strike to be targeted at her sword-holding hand and countered properly."

"Ahhhhhhh! So now it all makes sense. When her arm exploded and engulfed Hayase in fire, Mitsurugi rushed in and killed her with the hidden blade on her left hand, effectively ending the match."

"Precisely, all throughout their scuffle 1st Lt. Hayase was very determined to dismember 2nd Lt. Mitsurugi. Her plan could very well be deliberate ever since that moment."

"I see, I see! What a breathtaking game! And it's not over yet! Let's take a look at the rest of team Valkyries for more! What's going on here with Valkyries' rear unit and Archangel's Gun Interceptor Element!?"

 **Ayamine Kei**

 **Training Ground No.2**

"—breath in, breath out… breath in, breath out…"

"—haaaa… haaaa…" Kei saw Sakaki's serious face through her newly activated frame's monitor. For some reason, the glasses girl was wiping clean another pair of glasses.

"Isn't that your old pair? What… you are quadruple-eyes now?"

"Are you autistic? Quadruple is four elements."

"Then what's three elements?"

"…Triodruple…?" Apparently, Sakaki didn't know as well.

"Shut the fuck up, we're both stupid."

"You really are taking after Takeru these days, swearing that much isn't good!"

"…Up your tight ass."

"And sexual harassment isn't polite either!"

"…Dicks, balls… penis and vagina."

"Yoooooouuuuu…!"

"—Element C, sensors are captured inbound hostile targets. Permission is granted for K.I.A, action allowed."

"—Arc 4, roger. Moving to engage." Sakaki took a quick call with Kasumi about some incoming baddies.

"…'Permission granted for K.I.A'? Is she telling us to die?" Kei asked mockingly. Normally, an attack order wouldn't be worded like that.

"Ahh… Kasumi… isn't the greatest at using military words. Anyway, it's go time, Ayamine."

"Breath in, breath out… breath in, breath out…"

"I knoooow! We're in sync, I can feel it."

"It's weird… I thought… I hated working with you." It was supposed to be a casual remark Kei threw out, but it didn't feel anything but genuine.

"I know… when did we start… breathing as one?"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Mobile Command Post**

"And another good juke by Sakaki! She's got Kashiwagi completely on the run from here! Cutting down centre E-2 with no care in the world, can Munakata mount a rescue fast enough from their three O'clock!?"

"I'm feeling it! The checkmate is so, so close! Team Valkyries still has a chance if they can take down 2nd Lt. Sakaki and Ayamine or else this game is as good as over!" Sensei and I were reacting over live footage of another exciting fight.

"Losing their Gun Sweeper element plus Rush Guard right off the bat was bad, but they brought enough time for Isumi to make a getaway! And during a crisis such as this one, where could Ayamine possibly be at!? Unless that Shiranui coming in from behind the Valkyries is her!"

"It is! It actually is the Second Lieutenant! Do they- do the Valkyries not see her!? And she's in the action! Oh that uppercut! Quick on the feet, yes! Very swift movements!"

"Oh, oh! Is this-?! Oh! Oh-oh, OHOHOH—! Wombo combo! WOMBO COMBOOOOO! OOH! Not good enough! Munakata's NOT GOOD ENOUGH!"

"Hoooooly…! 1st Lt. Munakata gets A for effort and a golden star but she DID NOT SURVIVE that double team! Is that move even legal!? A twin chain attack from both sides! She had no chance in hell!"

"So to bring us up-to-date on the broadcast! Team A-01 9th is down to their last and only combatant! Can Isumi pull a miracle out of her ass!? Just where is she now anyway!?"

"Right there in Sector Grid F-14, Capt. Isumi seemed to be going for a long route around the left side! And she could very well make this flank thanks to all her teammates buying her time! 2nd Lt. Ayamine and Sakaki won't make it back in time, nor will 2nd Lt. Yoroi or Mitsurugi!"

"However, Archangel team's second trump card is still in her way! What kind of defence will Kagami and Yashiro put up!?"

 **Sakaki Chizuru**

 **Training Ground No.2**

"—have we got that flow… or what?"

"—yeah, yeah we did have the flow this time. We did good, Ayamine."

"Teamwork… makes the dream work."

"Uggggh, shut the fuck up."

 **Kagami Sumika**

"—Meiya-san, what's it called when you samurai people throw your sword like a boomerang?"

"—I am saddened to inform you, Sumika; but no self-respecting samurai would discard their steel for such a cheap strike."

"Ah, well, that's too bad." Sumika couldn't help but let out a sigh of disappointment.

"—actually… it's called Space Tornado Ayami—"

"Kei-san, please shut up."

"Now is not a good time for jokes, Ayamine." Poor Kei was shut down by two people at the same time.

"Thanks, assholes." And the stoic girl spoke no more.

"So, Meiya-san. If this move doesn't have a name, can I name it?"

"Huum… while I do not see a reason to refuse you, must you throw your sword no matter what, Sumika?"

"Ahehehe! It makes things easier, and flasher!" Meiya wordlessly shook her head.

"Well then, you are free to do as you see fit, Sumika."

"—Arc 3 reporting, we have target lock. Highest hit possibility calculation complete. Calculated statistics incoming, prepare to receive." By Kasumi's words, Sumika knew it was time to get to work.

"—Arc 2, ready." She responded seriously to her partner's information.

"Location; Sector Grid F-9, 23.558 to 45.884. Wind speed, 0.21 kilometres due east. Distance on impact, 734.21 metres. Optimal flight speed, 4.62 metres per second. Optimal flight duration, 159.61 seconds. Vector quantity statistics incoming, prepare to receive."

"Arc 2, ready."

"Direction, forty-eight degrees north of west; angle, forty-one degrees vertical; magnitude, eighty-one kilonewtons. Calculated statistics finalized, standby for launch."

"Arc 2, taking armoury."

"One shot, Sumika, do not miss your aim." In a cautioning voice, Meiya reminded the 00 unit as she picked up Meiya's leftover Type-74 CIWS in the Berkut's hand.

"Don't worry, I believe in math… and myself! —Arc 2, armoury loaded."

"Projectile launch in five… four… three…" Kasumi began the countdown which will conclude their game of war.

"Drill… Milky… shooooooot… Verrrrsion… two point zero…!"

"…Two… one. Fire on target."

"Suuupeer aweeesooome DELUXE PLUS ULTRA SMASHHHHHHH!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"Professor, professor, what do you call a nervous javelin thrower?"

"What do you call it, Capt. Shirogane?"

"Shakespeare!"

"Ahahahahahaha!" We both laughed.

"Back on track though; MOTHER OF GOD! SHE FUCKING NAILED ISUMI! Like BAAAM! Right in the kisser! I mean— Isumi was just minding her own business, thinking about how to mount a comeback on the Archangels when suddenly; outta nowhere a melee halberd took off her FUCKING HEAD!"

"From downtown! That throw had a hang-time of two minutes and thirty seconds! Covering a distance of over seven hundred metres! I don't even know how that's possible!"

"Auuugga! I'm like… so hard right now from watching that! SEVEN HUNDRED METRES BULLS' EYE! Ahhhha! Are you KIDDING ME?! SUMIKA!"

"I don't need to know that detail, Capt. Shirogane. But I think everyone probably feel a little aroused from seeing that. This is madness! This is absolutely madness!"

"NO! This! IS! SPART— uuwga!" I was mercilessly slapped across the face before I could get my meme out.

"Shirogane, no! Bad boy, bad! Not allowed! Anyway, ending this heated match on her decisive throw, I now proclaim the winners of this simulated game to be STF A-01 13th Squadron, Archangels! Congratulations, Captain!" Cheering with my arms high, I nodded at both sensei and the camera in manner.

"Yes, yes. Thank you very much, Professor Kouzuki. And thank you too, our viewers! This is indeed a very exciting competition with many twists and turns, albeit y'all shouldn't be surprised that my team won. Isn't that right, Suzumiya?" I finally addressed Suzumiya who was still suffering from our endless screaming earlier.

"UUUUUU! Capt. Shirogane you MEANNNNIEEEEE!" And she ran off like a maiden in distress. Were we still in the middle of the training ground? Because Suzumiya didn't even care.

"…That is certain one way to finish our broadcast, so yeah, it's over now. We actually have lots of work cut out all of a sudden, gotta go quick. It has been your lovely Vice-Commander, Kouzuki Yuuko—"

"And the 13th's Captain, Shirogane Takeru—"

"Wishing you guys a good day, signing off!" We bid our goodbyes to the audience together as I shut off the monitor and camcorder.

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Hangar**

"…So what happened to you, Captain? Something just looks off about that 94, think the head is a bit wonky." Munakata was surprisingly in a not-so-depressed mood when she greeted Michiru on the catwalk, even affording to crack a fast joke.

"Emmm… I caught a flying sword to the face, shit happens." Of which completely decapitated her unit in real life.

"Aaah, hit by a PB will do that to you. Try to avoid it next time, maybe?"

"Good tip, Munakata, will keep it in mind." And a wave of awkward silence washed over those two veterans contemplating their defeat.

"Capt. Shirogane's team cheated so hard."

"He absolutely did." Some form of agreement was reached.

"That over there, Captain, why is that Shiranui looking so… abnormal or is it just me?" Finally, Munakata found a new topic to discuss from a pair of Type-94s rolling into the hangar.

"That's 2nd Lt. Sakaki and Ayamine's units, they were flying them against us, right?"

"Uh-huh." Munakata nodded.

"I'm not confident, but I think those got shoulder and waist block thrusters, external ARH and… General Electronics's 140-GE-100." Michiru was quick to point out all the factors differing them from a regular 94.

"…Motherfucker…they were using Shiranui Seconds?"

"Seems like it, you didn't notice?" Michiru shot her companion a disorderly look, Munakata was the final survivor in face of Sakaki and Ayamine's onslaught.

"Was too busy getting my ass destroyed; so what now, nobody on their team is running good-old Type-94?"

"I don't know, do they still call Shiranui Second '94'?"

"—Actually, we call it TSF Type-02 Shiranui Second then brackets 'Test Type-01'. The tech ministry really wanted to call it TSF Type-01 for this year, but that'll be too confusing; besides, year's almost ended." That very informative voice belonged to the only professor on base.

"XO Kouzuki, ma'am." Swiftly, Michiru and Munakata both turned around and saluted their Vice-Commander. Professor Kouzuki seemed amused for a good minute; she waved off their show of respect much later than she normally does.

"You know, I do still think saluting and stuff is a waste of time but- that Shirogane and his team never salute me these days. I miss being valued a bit, I do have a PhD."

"Of course, ma'am. So for that TSF Type-02, is that what 2nd Lt. Sakaki and Ayamine used?" A confirmation for detail was submitted by Michiru.

"Yep, we got a couple of back-up units from the Ministry of Technology and modded it with data from the Phase 3. Thing's pretty good, raw stats are on-par with Royalty's 00. BTW, Test Type-02 is supposed to be F-15 Silent Eagle Gekkou, but that thing is still in development. So Test-01 will probably be adapted by the end of this year."

"We're really pushing for TSF development, huh? Is there a reason for that, ma'am?" Munakata took her turn to ask.

"Not really, more of a side-project of mine since that is all worked out. 21 is in three days." The two Eishis immediately understood what she meant.

"The future… does look bright."

"Sure does, bet Hayase'll be super excited to try out the Test-01. If she's done crying about being beat by Mitsurugi, that is." Michiru and Munakata commented on a few fun topics.

"—MUNAKATA! I HEARD THAT! I HEARD THAT!" A certain fun topic just happened to be nearby.

"Hey, it's our failure of a team-carry."

"What the fuck did you just say about me, you little bitch!? I'll have you know… uh— XO Kouzuki! I apologize, ma'am!" Seeing the Professor stopped Hayase dead in her tracks.

"Prffff…! Nice comeback, three hundred confirmed kills. Got taken out by an improvised explosive though, watch out for them roadside bombs." Relentlessly came Munakata's comeback.

"Geeh—! Well- at least I wasn't… gangbanged by… ah, fine! You have this one, Munakata!" She let loose a smug smile in victory.

"Ahem! You two, self-preservation is important." The trolling pair received a warning from their Captain.

"Sure, sure."

"Anyway, I do want to ask you three, what do you think about Shirogane's team's performance?" The seniors traded glances, debating whether to brush off their sense of anomaly or to come clean and seriously consider their options.

"Professor… I'm not saying this because we lost, but Shirogane's team is not normal. I can recognize talents when I see them, and while I do see very good talents in his Squadron; those people are more experienced than we are." There was something strange with his team that Michiru had to point out.

"Yeah, there's no way any pilot can look at that unit and think they recently graduated. Like- they know what they're doing too well, it's all instinct at this point; the shots, the acrobatics, it's like we were the newbies during that fight." And Munakata too, she could feel their power.

"Interesting… very interesting… oh well! I know what I need to know now, you all should take a break. Go watch Shirogane and my commentary during your match, I think I have a chance at acting. Dismissed, or whatever you call it." So the Professor left, simple as that.

"Hayase, don't you have an opinion on them?" After XO Kouzuki's departure, Michiru turned to her noiseless second-in-command.

"This isn't it yet, I can still get better! I'm eager, Captain! I can't wait!" What Hayase said caught Michiru off guard.

"So you're thinking like that, Hayase? Don't wanna mope around a bit more?" Munakata cut into their conversation.

"I always thought I was the very best, I reached the limit of man; the limit of what an Eishi is capable of. But I was shown that isn't the case! I can get better! I can still climb higher! Don't you know how powerful that is? I'm not done, I'm not done yet! WOOHOO! You first, Mitsurugi! Then Shirogane! I won't be BEAT!"

In her thrilled state, Hayase pumped her fists high above her head before slamming them on the railing, creating a loud bang. As Michiru watched, she felt relaxed and also a good sense of enthusiasm for their unknown future. Nothing was written in stone yet, so many paths, so much more potential.

"…And then I can avenge you… Takayuki. Until we have our important talk again… like insects, I'll put them down." What Michiru heard by the end, she decided to keep for herself.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Briefing room**

"You saw that match, boi? How're your thoughts?"

"Captain, I find your excessive cursing to be highly discourteous."

"I didn't ask you a goddamn thing, Takamura! So shut up!" Shouting energetically at the Royal Guard, I threw my hand of cards at her, which she deflected with a bored look in her eyes.

"Calm down, Capt. Shirogane. So you done playing?" Bridges, the guy I actually was talking to blended his hand into the pile as well.

"Yeah, I had orders to review the current state of progression with you people; I don't even know what that means." Sensei was very unclear with her intention.

We sat in a circle; Bridges, Takamura, Barchenowa, Sestina and I were playing some decks when I realized it was almost time for dinner. Following my gang's very successful game of manhunt, they were dismissed until six-thirty O'clock, which was almost here.

"Huurm, alright then. Let me see your cards, Cryska… wow, you were about to win this one too." The American leaned over to his girlfriend for a quick inspection.

"Really? I don't know how to play this game too well." If Barchenowa couldn't big-two, I had no way of saving her from that.

"I'll teach you in time, you too, Inia."

"Okay!" The younger twin nodded happily.

"Let's put these desks back together, and take a seat."

"Alriighty." We did a bit of organization. Once that was done, I stood by the podium while Team Yukon all sat in the front row.

"Urmm… so we got two Soviet defectors, an American deserter and you, Takamura. You being a loyal girl kinda ruins the idea behind this title, but I'll just roll with it anyway. You all ready for this? It's your new unit name." Nobody seemed that moving for my big reveal.

"Let's get on with it, I actually do have reports to write." Inpatient Bridges.

"Ahhh, fuck you, motherfucker. As of now, the four of you'll be part of Alternative IV's PROMINENCE department, Sub-division XFJ, special Test Flight Defiance; Takamura's in lead." Four pairs of jaded eyes stared me back.

"So we're still with PROMINENCE?" Eventually, Bridges thought of something to ask.

"Except you're under Alternative IV's supervision."

"Then like how restaurants change its owner but still serve the same food?"

"Exactly."

"Got it, boss-man. What else?" Talking with this dude was fast though, I had to admit not bitching for hours sent a good sensation down my bones.

"Details will come tomorrow, but essentially you're joining us for Op 21 as reserve unit. So that means if the regular units eat shit you people will go in; don't eat shit, okay?"

"Fuck off, anything else?"

"You get a flight back to Yukon once we're done with your dumbasses where you'll continue flying new version of goodies."

"Up yours, that it?"

"That's it, jerkoff. Now go fuck yourselves, I'm out." American English was and still is the best English.

 **PX**

"Takeru, I think the left booster-fin still needs some adjustment, I was flying NoE for eleven ticks earlier and the balance felt a bit off!"

"Is there not fucking food in my mouth? Send it to the mechanics!" I chopped Mikoto for her totally inappropriate and random comment.

"Takeru! Your recent unwarranted amount of cursing is increasing to noticeable degrees! I find it extremely unsettling." Meiya scolded me for being a big boy.

"Sorry, mom. I'll be more careful not to hurt your fragile heart."

"Haa… Takeru, why you must…" Acting just like my parents, mother sighed with a heavy dose of discontent.

"Hey, at least that commentary was fun to watch, right?"

"Ermm… I shall admit your style and speech was very… attractive to listen to. I laughed many times, it was a morbid form of entertainment." So I took it as Meiya meaning she was happy.

"Great, great. So! Everybody! What're your thoughts on this battle! I'm curious, why don't we start with the highest kill-count combo, Class rep and Ayamine!" Might as well find something to talk about, my group all turned to the two girls who I appointed by name.

"Ehh? What?" Class rep lifted her head with a mouthful of rice in a comedic fashion.

"Sakaki… that's disgusting." Instantly, Ayamine didn't miss a beat to abuse her partner.

"Shut up! I don't need this from someone who gulped down her food in seven seconds!"

"Yakisoba is world's justice… be punished… for that contempt."

"Please, just shut up and let me eat."

"So yeah… the Shiranui Second was good, like good… but good."

"That was— what? You just said 'good' three times without any adjective! It doesn't make sense! And we weren't done yet!"

"Because you're… not good."

Well, I had enough of this by the sixth run. Class rep and Ayamine worked wonders together in an Element. Like fire and water, they compensated for each other's weakness while improving their strong point; there probably was a better metaphor other than fire and water, not going to find it though.

"Anyway, Mikoto, Tama; your thoughts on the Raptors?"

"Oh, oh! They're very fast! And other people can't see us so we're very invisible! That's about it!" Yes, useful information, everything she said.

"Err… eeeerm! Miki really likes her new rifle! The Extended AMWS shoots very straight and hits very hard! The F-22 is also super amazing! I didn't know they're that manoeuvrable!" At least what Tama expressed could be interpreted.

Even now, I still had no clue how Yuuko-sensei got us some F-22As from the States. Although I definitely won't be questioning her method anytime soon, ignorance had never been more of a bliss.

As for the machines themselves, the selling point here surely were Mikoto's missiles and Tama's rifle. The AIM-144 Jericho, America's next line of guided shells, meant to replace the AIM-120 AMRAAM for selected crafts. So it is pretty much a big missile which explodes into smaller missiles, which explodes.

Onto Tama's gun, there wasn't a real title attributed to this thing yet. Oddly resembling an old-world SR-25 DMR in design, her long-range rifle could fire two different calibres of rounds; 57mm and 107mm. Thinking about it now, this thing also took ideas from EU's Mk.57 Squad Support Gun, specially that bullet size.

"Moving onto you, Sumika. How's the Berkut?"

"It works great! I like it!" Simple and easy.

"You, Kasumi?"

"I like the Su-47 too, I have CQC alternatives, but I didn't have to use them this time." Kasumi's 47 shipped in along with a dozen other Berkuts from Russia. Not gonna lie, I was quite hyped to see Sumika's Prafka army in action.

So we sat around, talked a bit more about our TSFs. Meiya sounded really happy to defeat Hayase in battle, said despite contrary belief, she had gambled everything on her 120mm arm trap; if Hayase didn't bite, she'd be dead as the First Lieutenant landed more hits than her.

After that we dismissed and left, Sadogashima was so close we all needed a good night's rest.

 **Shirogane's room**

"T-ta-Takeru-c-chan! Do-do-do you w-want to—"

"C'mon, you can do it, Sumika. 'Do you want to' what?"

"D-do yo-you want to spe-spend t-t-tonight… uumm—"

"You're doing it, girl. Say the rest, I believe in you."

"S-spend tonight… s-s-sm-smashing…?"

"I hear that, all I'm bringing is a GameSquare controller, not an erection. C'mon, woman, just say it. Smash what? Smash what!?"

"D-do you w-want to spend t-tonight S-SMAASHING T-THIS P-P-PUS-PUSS— THIS PUSS— THI-T-TH-THIS PU-PUS-SS-PUSS— AGGGGHAH! I CAN'T! TAKERU-CHAN YOU STUPID IDIIIIIIOOOOT! DIE-DIE-DIE-DIE! AGGGRRRRA! IDIOT! IDIOT! IDIOT!" Close enough.

"Pfffff…! AHAHAH-ahahahahaha! Get over here, I love you, Sumika."

"Awwaaa… I love you too, Takeru-chan."

 **Author's note**

Another over 10000 words chapter, these things just kinda happens, you're welcome? I have this omake chapter I want to throw out but that'll make things way too long again, maybe next time.

Writing is seriously slowing down these days mostly just because I'm lazy as hell, I'll update when there's new stuff to update, can't really rush myself.

As always, please leave a review and stuff, hopefully it's about a mistake I made in this chapter so I can fix it. Mistakes really piss me off, after all.

BETA done by chad001, what do you call a nervous javelin thrower?

Shakejavelin.


	39. Long night of solace

**Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 23, 2001**

 **Shirogane's room**

It was funny; lying here, fondling and sucking Sumika's tits like a newborn infant, I deliberated on my past life and decisions. I was successful, this loop was successful. But for how much longer? I didn't know. How would I know my journey had ended? Currently, wiping out the original Hive sounded like a solid goal.

But it was a goal, not a dream; not my dream.

"Urrrm… Taaakeeru-chan… nothing's gonna come out even if you keep sucking, silly…" I brought my eyes up to meet Sumika's sleepy, half-opened pupils. She wrapped herself around me like a caring mother, in the non-creepy or incestuous kind of way.

"Hey, you know why boobs are just like Legos?"

"Because they're meant for kids but the dads play with them more?" Not breaking our rhythm, Sumika retorted to my joke.

"Damn, you knew?"

"Ahehe, that's because Takeru-chan is so simpleminded and easy to— oowieee!" I did forget to tell her to bite the pillow when I bit her pillow.

"Nom, nom, nom. Breasts are so much fun, I'll be jealous by the day my kids take over my role of enjoying them."

"Ahaha— d-don't say that, Takeru-chan… you know… it won't happen."

That was the truth, another fact I rejected in my head. There was nothing to be done that, so I didn't want to ever think about it. Sumika didn't deserve to suffer like this, nobody in this world did. It was blatantly unfair; however, that was life.

"Huum… well, that'll make sure no accidents can happen. By the way, did you know Yuuko-sensei has a hidden stash of condoms in her room?" And there was nothing more I could say.

"Reallly? Does she have one of 'those'?" How was this the first connection both her and Ayamine drew? The appeal of futa was lost to me.

"Are you like- secretly a lesbian or something? That would be such plot twist, this'll make 'no I am your father' look like a poorly written fanfic!"

"Takeru-chan… I'm not commenting on this one." Straight out rejected.

"Then what you wanna talk about? I got nothing." We really sucked at this pillow talk thing, I was more skilled with pump and dump; the other one, not the stocks.

"Well… Operation 21 is going to be in two days, right? Like always." Sumika felt my awkwardness and dropped our pervious conversation completely.

"Yeah, you get to fly your XG-70 finally."

"A lot of people are going to die, aren't they?" For some reason, she was deadset on being serious with me for once.

"…Yeah, many will." So all I could do was to go along with her topic.

"But it doesn't matter, right? I'm the most important one to you, right?"

"…Yeah, you're right."

"Thank you, Takeru-chan. Please save me, being here… is too painful already."

"…Yeah, I know."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko's office**

"Checking in, Shirogane?" Morning was a good time for story.

"You got it, how's the reception on yesterday's show, sensei?" I took a comfortable seat on her soba as per tradition.

"People really enjoyed it, we even got an organized gang of bookmakers on base. And the odds were forty-sixty; there was some faith in your team." Being recognized was just right.

"Nice, the minority's getting a fat payout. How about we talk Sado now?"

"Yeah, so then; do you have any of those juicy secrets I should know before it's too late?" Logically, sensei wanted information.

"Being thoughtful about this… there're a few things you need to know. Under the assumption that basic planning is already done with, I suggest a few changes. First, we made sure the BETA don't know about our XG-70, correct? Also, is that thing finished?"

"Yes and yes. If BETA could gain knowledge from us through their reactor, they didn't. I completed the final configuration on the Susanoo II a few days back, one big gun and two smaller guns are mounted. All we need is Kagami." Yuuko-sensei clicked around her computer, probably to double-checking her statement.

"Okay, good. First- the real first point; the ODST people, make sure they run away any second they encounter any large groups of BETA."

"You mean the Orbital Divers? Why?" I took a second to realize they weren't call shock troopers.

"BETA's got about four Divisions of dudes lying in wait under their Hive, they'll start digging up like that scene from Vol.2 of Kill Bill, destroying the Divers' vanguard and pushing out to the surface." If only the BETA followed dig-dug rules and not ruin us, that would be great.

"They can create new shafts now? That'll make things problematic."

"You won't know the least of it. They fucked us really, super hard on the first-run. Not again. So anyway, if we aren't leaking information then they won't know our attack's coming, thus they won't be hiding their Laser-class; hopefully. In any case, ask me before switching to regular shells from metal cloud."

"So they're using real tactics now… keep going." Sensei donned a serious demeanor as she listened to my every word.

"Oh, by the way; are you having Sumika interact with the reactor or just shooting it?" This was a very important detail not to be left forgotten.

"We can still decide on that if need be. I recently figured out a way to bypass their two-way data transfer and only extract information from this side, however it's not tested yet."

"I see, either is fine with me but, you know what reactor doesn't leak any information?"

"A dead reactor?"

"A dead reactor." For a brief second, sensei joined me in chuckling.

"I don't care what you do, we just have to bait all their guys to the surface and then go in. Once Sumika gets her particle cannon to the front, it's blast time."

"That'll work, alright. More specifics are coming in a few hours so if you have added changes you want to make, hit me up. Side-track you a bit here, how was your first time doing this?" I was waiting on this question for a long, long time.

"We ate shit so hard flies around the world must be jealous by our supply."

"Sounds marvelous, what could possibly go wrong?"

"Turns out, pretty much everything." This was what all the operations I ran had in common.

"Isn't that always the case?"

"Uh-huh, we kamikazed Isumi and the Susanoo II for a G-bomb explosion; was my first time seeing it up close and not dying from it. Also Kashiwagi kinda died for no reason." Good moments were had.

"Let's not have you do that this time, I like keeping my progress. You know what I hate? When I play Pockétmon for three hours and then the goddamn DX dies, no auto-save is bullshit."

"I know, right? It's like being told to fuck off by the… wait, hold on, you played what, on your what?" That sentence had no many flaws I wouldn't be able to mark it as an English teacher.

"Ah, this's a transferred memory too, heh? I should probably tell you by now, you're conducting causality all over the place these days. I'm remembering stuff I have no business remembering; like that one time when Marimo got drunk off her ass during our hot-spring trip and pegged you."

"NO! She didn't do that! She did not do that! …I think. And stop being so disturbing all of a sudden! That's my job!" A perverted… pervert should only be me under all circumstances.

"Hehehe, whatever. You wondered why your team of novices beat Isumi's team today and why you took down Yukon? I'm betting on the parallel world's information dispensation, this seriously never happened before?" Judging by sensei's look, she was no longer kidding around.

"No, not to this degree, anyway. If you can recall events like our hot-spring in detail, I can't imagine what my Squad remembers by this point."

"Actually, I don't think they know much. This's like déjà vu, but much stronger. The stuff we talk about triggers those memories way more than what you people do together. Besides, it's not anything bad if your team becomes super competent."

"True that, they'll tell me if it gets serious. I'll watch for now… what should I watch for?" Rarely, I also confuse myself with my own thoughts.

"Err… keep an eye out for changes in personality, like mine. You notice how I'm acting really relaxed and super casual these days? It's undoubtedly all thanks to you, Shirogane." Yuuko-sensei pointed at me like she was a teenager as she said that.

"But, won't acting so relaxed be bad for someone in your position?"

"Ayy, I'll be careful in public. It is good though, I'm much happier these days for nothing. You should try it out, virtuous for your body." Again, she spun in circles in her chair.

"Whatever you say, sensei. Another thing, where is Marimo-chan?" I felt a certain shame for having elapsed about her until now, maybe I just wasn't used to seeing her around.

"Errr… right, I forgot to tell you, but she returned to the IJA." That was way too big of a subject to just forget, even if I did the exact same thing.

"So… when was that?"

"December… fourteen."

"Nine fucking days!?"

"You didn't ask." Yuuko-sensei got me right there.

"Okay, fine. I'm partly to blame for this. What does she do now?"

"As a famous Major within the Imperial Army, I'm pretty sure she's the commander of the 1st Tactical Armoured Regiment these days." My mind literally imploded in on itself.

"She's the fucking what!? …Actually, it's not that surprising, now that Sagiri's fired, Marimo-chan does sound like a good fit." And she was in that role for four years when Alternative IV failed.

"Yeah, that's it. And hey, that unit is going to be participating in Operation 21, so you'll see her again."

"Arrgg… okay, whatever. If nothing else, I'm gonna go, sensei." I honestly just wanted to leave at this point.

"You'll be called in a few hours for Sado op meeting, boy. Now get out so I can search for some cat pictures in our database." We had those?

 **Briefing room**

"So, er… before I inform you people on today's training, I gotta jerk off first." The reaction was very mixed for that opening; my team all sighed in unison like grandparents who thought of me as nothing more than a failure. Although Munakata giggled a bit, so it wasn't all bad.

"Shirogane, shut up. The real news is at dawn today, the UN 11th Army HQ officially announced an operation against the Sadogashima Hive to all Far East and UN armies." Isumi just had to come in and ruin my fun.

"This's the big jackpot we been cooking up these days, that trip to Yukon was also for the purpose of Operation 21. As in, the Sado Hive is 21 in number. Only units going from this base is us and that one PROMINENCE Flight on backup. Our mission is to escort and protect this super doomsday weapon from BETA hands. Isumi, continue."

"Out unit will leave Yokohama Base at 0400 hours…" Blab, blab, blab, blab. Also on a completely unrelated note, I really did say 'so' a lot; this was just on my mind.

"-Actually, I don't think that info is accurate anymore. I got updated detail for all you people." Just in the nick of time, sensei arrived with perfect fashion to save me from boredom. Following behind her was Bridges' team, it created this weird moment where nobody made a sound for a good while.

"Sup, playa." I acknowledged him.

"Don't say that, you're not dark-skinned enough to say that." He was right, I couldn't argue against Bridges' logic.

After properly saluting everyone around, his people took the far-back seats in our room, concealing their presence but also listening in.

"XO Kouzuki? I thought we're being instructed on the operation after training?" Isumi voiced her complaint.

"Well you see, does the General really have time to explain some detail to only two Squadrons? Does he really? Besides, I want to get this over and done with as well. Easy stuff right here." She said as she took the centre stage.

"Seconded, Yuuko-sensei. Let's make it fast, I truly do want to have a wank."

"There's also this… we don't need General Radhabinod seeing this." Couldn't agree more, sensei just knew me too well.

"Understood, please go ahead, Vice-Commander."

"Alright, let's get this show on the road. As you all know, this joint UN and Imperial operation's goal is to gain control over Objective 21, Sadogashima Hive. And it will be carried out regardless of atmospheric conditions, so that means we're throwing you in no matter what weather it is."

Everyone was all ears and silent as could be, there really wasn't much to joke around about. Therefore, she resumed her breakdown of our mission.

"The primary objective will be to neutralize Objective 21, secondary objective is to occupy enemy facilities and gather as much information as possible. Now I should tell you how important this op is but nobody cares anyway, you all are motivated enough as is." Too true.

"Phase 1, orbital bombardment from the UN Space Armada's Armoured Destroyers. They'll be bombing Sadogashima using anti-laser munitions at supersonic speed. At the same time, the UN-Imperial 2nd Fleet surrounding Sado will begin long range saturation precision bombing using guns and artilleries."

"Same as space ordnance, the first wave will use only anti-laser rounds. Once their Laser-class shoot all the heavy metal clouds out, all ships are switching to multi-purpose shells and bombing the area even more."

"Interesting thing to know here; we're consuming less ammo than initially planned for, only fifty-five percent of all Far East, UN and Imperial Army shell reserves. By prediction, a large number of BETA species except for Laser-class will still be present, Lasers are priority." Some changes, sounded reasonable.

"After this, it's Phase 2. The 2nd Fleet will enter Mano Bay, headed by some ships I won't remember anyway. The bombing will keep going and Imperial Navy's 17th Armoured Battalion should assault this beachhead here, whatever it's called." Using a large pointer to highlight the map, sensei was dedicated to not reading names.

"Here's where we're getting involved. Along with callsign Whiskey Unit, which is four Imperial Armoured Division and ten Armoured Regiments; the UN, namely Alternative IV is sending in our Eclipse Unit. Two Squadrons of Su-47 Berkuts under my direct command, to make landfall, details are classified, don't ask."

Many expressions of amazement were observable for that moment. Isumi's group looked chattery and tense about the sudden introduction of Soviet crafts. 'Even if they are listening to us, it doesn't change where those Squadrons come from' was likely their thought.

"Whiskey Unit and Eclipse Unit will hold the line while moving its main force west… towards this place. They're the bait, reinforcement from the Hive should be going over to them." Most didn't know this, but having the Berkuts in first meant Sumika will see combat before any of us.

"After the BETA reinforcements are drawn to where Whiskey and Eclipse are at, we'll go to Phase 3. The UN's Pacific Fleet and UN-Imperial 3rd Fleet deployed in this bay here, which is the opposite of the 2nd Fleet, they will start bombardment."

"At the same time, Imperial Navy's 4th TSF Battalion will take beachhead and let a group of three Armoured UN regiments and five TSF Regiments unload; callsign Echo. You people's mission start here, alongside Echo Unit's landfall."

"If things go as planned and the battle lines heading North works, then the enemy reinforcements from their Hive should be split to two groups very cleanly. Leaving almost nobody guarding this third front by this city placey." Without this map showing us actual location names, we'd be screwed by sensei's update.

"Then it's Phase 4. Bombardment ends, the 6th Orbit Diving Corps will be landing on Sadogashima and infiltrating Objective 21, their mission is to achieve the secondary objective. So basically clearing and looting. Echo Unit should be providing backup for the infiltration, also watching out for BETA resurfacing from the ocean floor."

"Once we reach this phase of the operation, it's the grand action time of A-01. Same thing happens if the infiltration units are wiped out. Go on, Isumi, brief your team, and only your team." It was important sensei said her lines the way she did.

"As I said earlier, our unit's mission during the Objective 21 Operation is not to fight the BETA directly…" The stuff she talked about was pretty much similar to my past. In point form, I'll list them out because it was so damn long.

Valkyries were here to escort XG-70b, from its incursion to extraction.

Valkyries were not to fight BETA forces unless it is deemed absolutely obligatory.

In case of engagement, Valkyries were to conserve ammo for when dudes go for XG-70b.

She also talked about resupply and how they're supposed to be done from containers dropped from the battleships, nothing I haven't heard of before.

"Now I'll explain our mission alongside the overall plan. With Echo Unit, we'll make landfall and head south to secure the area around Old Kaminibo where the new wea—"

"STOOOP! That's where the change comes in, Captain." Suddenly, Yuuko-sensei put a stop to Isumi; her altered plan was the real steal of this show.

"The new weapon will be landing with both your team and Echo unit, then moving to a location perpendicular to both assault forces as to not cause friendly casualty from its main fire." So instead of arriving after Phase 4, we were attacking after Phase 4. Easy stuff.

"Around this time is when the Orbital Divers will be pulling out from the Hive Stabs to bait out the BETA inside. This formation will give us a perfect shot to wipe out the main BETA force and their monument." Some gasps could be heard from the girls on my side, surely a weapon capable of destroying the monument would be surprising to them.

"Once that thing is gone, Echo units and the weapon will infiltrate the Hive again to clean out any remainders. After that, we can pack up and go home within forty-eight hours. Now let's get to the good part, just what exactly this WMD is."

"We should all know this operation is the biggest counterattack since Lucifer, so that means both UN and Imperials have lots of reasons for backing this. But none is as significant as testing this new weapon, just think about that for a minute." And everyone did, for like two seconds.

"This armament really is the future for humanity; us, Far East and Japan all know this, and we all want it to succeed. All of you, it's your job to protect it, nothing can compare to how vital this is remember that."

"Yes, ma'am!" Dynamically, the soldiers replied.

"So then, enough with teasing you people. I shall tell you right now just what could save us. Behold! The trump card in the war against BETA, a machine never before thought possible…"

Dramatically, the screen behind us changed to that of Susanoo's blueprint. It was indeed a very pretty blueprint, I liked how thorough those lines were sketched, no doubt a huge around of effort was put in by the computers.

"This is the XG-70b, also known as Susanoo Type 2." By the way, it was a big fortress, just what sensei ordered.

So once again, sensei began her lecture on the history, progress and everything that made the Susanoo possible. And to me, this just meant one more summary so I wouldn't fall asleep while listening to this boring, albeit very essential crap.

Built by Americans to infiltrate and destroy a Hive on its own, concept frozen for G-Bombs until we bought it.

Had a super shield, charged particle cannon and gravity control. The Moorcock-Lechte Anti-Gravity Engine did… something; I was too lazy to explain this shit.

Also, getting within ten metres equalled death; getting too close beside it or right behind it when particle cannon is firing equalled death; getting shot by laser or getting crawled on after firing its cannon, when the Rutherford Field is off equalled Sumika's death.

"Here's a late addition, Ministry of Technology's EML-99X Electromagnetic Induction Launcher. Both guns are mounted below the upper hull wings, directly to the left and right of the particle cannon. RPM is around eight hundred, firing rail accelerated ammunitions capable of braking Destroyer's shells."

"These guns do an outward sweep from Susanoo's waist area to its back, so full three hundred sixty-five degrees coverage angel. Remember this, the guns cannot fire when the Rutherford Field is up; so they're only good for action after the initial firing of the particle cannon. "

This part I hadn't seen in my previous loops so I paid great attention to not miss any features. The Railguns seemed to be a concrete choice for defence as it could be fired in all directions, making them very versatile. As long as no BETA gets on the Susanoo itself, the Railguns could hit them.

"And that's it for my part, Capt. Shirogane, our sequences were a bit weird but it's your turn to explain the role of your team. Feel free to go ahead." Finally, at long last I could show off.

"Okay girls! You all heard what Isumi just said, now I want you to forget all of that! Our job is the exact opposite of theirs. For operation 21, we're going in to kill." A good while passed, my girls all shot back blank stares my way, waiting for me to explain in-depth on my statement.

"…No, that's it. We have unrestricted authority and are there to kill every single piece of alien meat you see. Just like when Columbus discovered America and murdered all the native people there, we take no survivors and simply slaughter everything. Although no raping the women, unless you know… you find a way."

Some soundless laughs of surrender were heard, like always, the girls had nothing to add to my amazing description.

"Serious talk; we'll go in together with Echo Unit and Valkyries, kill all the BETA on the surface until the Orbital Divers finish doing their thing. Once the second wave of BETA horde rises, XG-70 blasts them and we move into the Hive itself to slay more dudes. Questions?" No hands were raised.

"Because we're going head on in there, everyone in Archangels will be given an S-11. Activation and everything is covered in training, so you shouldn't run into any tactical problems." This was one of these moments again.

"As your boss I'm gonna tell you… don't use that thing. If you're ever so shit as to Allahu Akbar your way out, I'll personally find your eighteen virgins and bang them in first. Don't fucking do it, just don't." The girls shared some gazes of uncertainty for a bit, unsure whether my command had any bias behind it.

"Yes, sir!" Still, they valued their own lives. And I was going to keep it that way.

"Oh, on the final note; Takamura, you know what you people have to do?' Having forgotten the existence of our XFJ team until now, I addressed Meiya's servant when I reminisced the proper duty for her.

"Of course, we will launch immediately on demand from our TSF-Carrier."

"Good, that' it. This shit's easy, what's next, sensei?" And I always heard how much a pain it is to brief dudes, such lies.

"This's everything, people. I'll be commanding from the Imperial Navy's operational flagship, Heavy Cruiser Mogami. So if you see Laser-class shooting at the fleets, protect my ship first." Her pretty funny joke earned a ripple of giggles from the Eishis below.

"Throughout history procedures with great causality create rifts in time itself. Birth of Jesus Christ; Reformation, Renaissance, Industrial Revolution, American Revolution, WWI, WWII; and most importantly, our discovery of BETA in 1958 and its subsequent invasion of Earth in 1973, this was the beginning of a world changing event."

Every person in this room listened zealously to Yuuko-sensei's final statement. The history of our world might not be a remarkable one in the universe, but it is ours, and it is riddled with our losses against the relentless BETA.

"Once we saw how much a threat BETA are; we tried twice to attack them. Palaiologos and Lucifer, one was a total failure and the other was a 'Press G in case of emergency' ending. That's unacceptable, we're not going to lie down and let the BETA kill us. So people continue fighting, now we're attacking again. For the first time, for real."

Failures were not allowed, only victory, only success shall be visible on the road I paved ahead.

"Hehehe, so that means we're gonna win, and keep on winning until we're tired of winning, got that!?" Ending on a humorous message, her joke again brought amusement to the room.

"Yes, ma'am!"

"Good! Now go practice some more. Shirogane, Kagami, Yashiro. See me after today's training is done, that's it. You're dismissed." As usual, the time-travellers were high in demand.

"Salute!" I called for a show of respect before sensei disappeared behind the doors.

"The Susanoo's callsign will be A-02. Is there anything I missed, Capt. Shirogane?"

"Nope, this concludes the briefing on Op 21. After training today, we'll gather at 0200 in the morning, eat, take out our shit and sleep. Got it?" Most of the girls were unsure of my meaning.

"He meant organize your belongings, get rid of anything that might sadden your loved one if they do happen to receive it."

"For example, any pornographic material you have… or Shirogane's hentai stash. Depending on your taste." Munakata added her own insight.

"Exactly, my tentacles collection gotta be elsewhere. I'll miss them, my pictures of Sumika." Nobody understood that one, and this wasn't me ignoring the mountain of pure rage compiling behind me, Sumika was still happy as could be.

" _Taaaaakeeeeeruuuuu-chaaaan! One of these days… you just wait…_ " Very exciting, it was.

 **Yokohama Base, Reactor control room**

"Real fast, we'll run this down one last time. Kagami, you control the Berkuts in two ways; regular remote piloting with your mind power and Prafka remote piloting you can do with Yashiro. The range of your influence is a very strong twenty klicks, so as long as you don't fly off, you'll have the Su-47s full time."

"Roger, Kouzuki-sensei!" Sumika received her knowledge clearly.

"Russians gave us seventeen 47s, not counting the one you took from Kamchatka, so one for Yashiro and two Squadrons of Eclipse Units. I cut a bunch of deals with the Soviets for this, please don't let your superpower be a disappointment."

"It won't be, Professor." Kasumi reassured sensei's worry.

"As for the Sado Reactor, if this works then we can excerpt their information without losing ours. You just need physical contact with any part of its surface and Voilà! Knowledge gained. Let's get you incorporated with that right now, won't take long." Therefore sensei was about to guide Sumika away after a fairly pointless explanation.

"Oh, and Shirogane."

"What's up." Sounded like Yuuko-sensei had business with me too, I thought she just wanted to waste my time for no purpose after dinner.

"Take that box and go find Piatif, give it to her." It was a rather average container she pointed for me, about five centimetres in height and seven in length.

"What's in here?"

"Ninety-two percent pure G-Element number nine, one of the most concentrated piece of work available to man. I am about to use two milligrams for Kagami's 'Reactor hacking' ability. The rest are going back to storage."

"Ooooooh, so meth?" By sensei's amused expression, I assumed she got my reference.

"Ahuhu, you can smell what Heisenberg is cooking, now go. I have work to do."

"Roger, roger." Then I left.

 **PX**

"Ah, Takeru-san! Come play with us!" I heard my name used by Tama as I walked pass the PX, apparently they were enjoying a good game of Chinese Aeroplane Chess.

"Can't really right now, gotta find 1st Lt. Piatif. Professor's orders." As for me, I couldn't find that damn Polish no matter where I tried.

"Oh, Shirogane! What you… what's in that box…? Captain?" From thin air, Hayase popped out and eyed me suspiciously before settling her sight on the container in my hands. Her mien took a strange turn for the curious as she became more focused on my box.

"This? It's for 1st Lt. Piatif, have you seen her?"

"…Huh…? What is it… saying?" Her half-omitted sentence made no sense to me.

"Hey! I said have you seen 1st Lt. Piatif!"

"Oh! Oh- y-yeah, actually. I can bring it to her, if you want." Hayase was distracted by my chest even though it was nothing special on the outside, unless she got X-ray version or something, I didn't know why she was so attracted.

"Really? That'd be a great help, thanks. Don't open it though, it's highly classified." Still, I really wanted to play some airplane chess right now and get fucked by dice RNG.

Besides, it wasn't like G-Element was dangerous or anything. I even ate some in one of my loops and nothing happened for twenty years until death. Good days those were, like when I first learned how Yuuhi had that technique with her mouth…

"Alright, I'll take it then. Later, Captain."

"Yep, see ya." My mental masturbation wasn't about to end with Hayase's departure. Yuuhi was so damn hot in those lingerie…

 **Suzumiya Haruka**

 **Hallway**

"Err… emm, Mitsuki?"

Today, like any other day, Haruka was on her way back to her room after finishing her work when she ran into Mitsuki. Technically, she saw Mitsuki, because the blue-haired girl was ignorant to Haruka's greeting.

"Mitsuki, are you okay?" Slowly, Haruka tiptoed up to her best friend only due to the other girl being completely zoned out.

From behind, Mitsuki was seemingly holding onto something with devoted scrutiny. While she had no proof, it felt like the Storm Vanguard 1 was conducting a misdeed. Haruka didn't spot any crime per say, it was just her friend's aura which felt dubious.

"Taka—… is this—?"

"What are you doing, Mitsuki?" By now, Haruka was directly within arms' reach of her, yet Mitsuki was totally unaware. However, what she thought she heard wasn't something Haruka could let slip by.

"Takayuki… Takayuki, where're you…?" That was it, she couldn't hide it anymore.

"Mitsuki! Just what in the world are you holding in your hands!?"

"AAAAHA! What's—! H-Haruka! You-you scared me!" Almost instantly, Mitsuki retracted two steps away and hastily hid whatever she held back in a box.

Her face had fear and anxious written all over it, unlike the normal cheerful Mitsuki Haruka was used to. Sweats were dripping down her foreheads by the bucket and she could swear there were tear-marks glued to the former swimmer's cheeks.

"What's in that case, Mitsuki?"

"Oh, t-this? It's just a job for Shirogane! He wanted me to run an errand!" For how much she was panicking, Haruka knew something went wrong.

"Then why were you calling Narumi-san's name!?"

"It's NOTHING! I just… I just remembered him, okay!? It happens!"

"But you look so distressed! This isn't normal, Mitsuki! Why are yo—"

"It's cause he's DEAD! Can I not be depressed when thinking about my dead crush!? …Why did I have to be him!? He shouldn't have gone back inside there!" Utterly speechless; Haruka was too shocked to react anymore. The truth hurt her, her and Mitsuki.

"I-I gotta go now! Operation is close, goodnight, Haruka!" And Mitsuki took this opportunity to run off, not to be seen again until next time.

"…Mitsuki… we're going to settle this, right? Both of us… will still be here to finish it… we promised, right?" Another night came to an end.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **December 24, 2001**

 **Yokosuka Navy Base**

"—Takeru-chan! Takeru-chan, what ship is that!?" I glanced over at Sumika's Berkut to see her pointing its gun at a Warship.

"—that's the Shiratsuyu-class destroyer, Yuudachi. Like its WWII counterpart, but modern."

"Ahh! Yuudachi! Poi, poi!" I saw that coming from the moon.

Our two Squadrons were flying overhead by Yokosuka, waiting to be loaded into either a TSF-Carrier or an Assault Ship. To this day, I still didn't understand the difference between those two; one transported TSFs so it was a Carrier, the other transported TSFs so it was an Assault Ship. How the fuck did that work?

"—Yokosuka command to Special Task Force A-01, commence landing sequence. 9th Squadron, please board Osumi-class Assault Ship, Osumi. 13th Squadron, please board Shokaku-class TSF-Carrier, Zuikaku." A quick note from the air-control tower updated our next step.

"—Shirogane, your team is going by Carrier?" As my Company descended upon the ship hangar, Isumi called me over our channel.

"—yep, we're the real vanguards, ha! Eat it! But really, one Assault Ship is just not enough to ferry two Squadrons."

"Sure, sure. The plan says we'll sticking together until we reach Sado, whose ship are we going to for dinner?" That was an arrangement we agreed prior to leaving Yokohama.

"Probably yours, Kazama has all the party stuff, right?"

"Oh, yeah. See you then, Isumi out." Our comms were cut from her side once we finished talking.

"—you know, it's funny how the TSF-Carrier is called Zuikaku, but we also have a TSF frame call Zuikaku!" A hidden connection on the Japanese naming sense was discovered by Mikoto.

"Actually, that does bother me a bit. Like- there's also Fubuki and Shiranui, it's fine if we want to name TSF after ships, but shouldn't we not then name the ships the same goddamn name? Where's the logic behind that? Japanese people sure are weird."

"—Takeru, you must have realized by now, you yourself are also part of the Empire of Japan." That was Meiya, nitpicking at me.

"Welp, that's just how I roll. Self-roast. Anyway, all units, finish docking and we'll take a break until 1900 hours. We're going to Osumi after that, y'all know what it's for. Dismissed!"

 **Sea of Japan, Osumi-class Assault Ship, Osumi**

"Before we start, everyone. I'd like to remind all of us the two meanings of Christmas. The first one, it's a day when one child gave humanity its hopes and dreams. The salvation of people from its sin, from its tragedy."

I was standing a bit higher than the crowd, there was at least fifty people here, waiting for me to officially start our party. We gathered above the deck of the Osumi, some of the ship's crew also joined us for tonight's fiesta. This was our Christmas party, Christmas Eve was the best date possible.

"Its seconding meaning; it's a day for adults to give their children dreams. Untainted kids who know nothing of war, nothing of despair… not knowing what it's like to lose their loved ones. One day, they'll populate this planet, our green planet collated by peace."

From where I stood, there were many shades of red; Santa hats, reindeer headdresses, and Sumika's ridiculous looking rabbit hair-piece which was wearing another Santa hat.

"And tomorrow… we're all here to fight a war. Relying on the hope given to us by a single child, we'll create our own world. Public speaking isn't my strong point so I'm choking like mad here, but anyway. There is no future save for what we choose for ourselves, and everyone; just remember—"

"We won't be going gently into that good night, for we're not going anywhere. Grasp your future, for yourself; and we shall all take hold of our own destiny. Cheers, ladies and gentlemen. Also, merry Christmas, motherfuckeeers!" Always a good practice to end a touching speech.

"—MERRRRRY CHRISTMASSSSSS!"

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

"Have you accomplished that task I ordered, Takamura?"

"Yes, Mitsurugi-sama. Tsukuyomi Mana-sama was called to replace her cousin as Ikaruga-sama's second-in-command, she will be participating in Operation 21 as callsign Crest 2."

"I see, how severe is Maya's injury?" Meiya didn't need to be told why Tsukuyomi had to step in for her family.

"My apology… I was not informed on her status." A sorrowful Takamura hid her face in shadows.

"Worry not, as a selected servant to Her Highness, Maya will not give in so easily. You may go now, Takamura. Shall fortune guide you in tomorrow's battle."

"Understood, Mitsurugi-sama. I hope my contribution will not be needed." So Takamura exited herself.

Meiya wandered above Osumi's deck, Christmas spirit was inflating the hearts of many including herself. It was a beautiful quality; the food stands, the blinking lights, the joyful looks on people's faces. It all was too alien for Meiya, yet she remembered fondly, how her first ever Christmas party wasn't as grand as this.

"Ahha! It's Meiya-san! Haaalooo!" When her name was spoken by the always happy Sumika, Meiya turned her attention to reality.

"Sumika, it is nice to see you. How are you enjoying this party?"

"I really like it! Takeru-chan and Isumi-san and her friends spent a long time setting this up!"

"Indeed, has he ever established a festival similar to this?"

"Huum? Of course he has! Takeru-chan is good at ordering people around!" Meiya withheld her urge for long enough, but like an itch below one's skin, this sensation of anomaly was too much of a bother.

"A question if you will, Sumika. Has Takeru always acted in such a… presumptuous fashion? Personally, I believe he recently became more… dominant and rough. While his cursing does not inconvenience me, I feel as if he has changed a great deal."

"Eh? I don't think so, Takeru-chan's always been like that!" Meiya instinctively retracted, her assumption was denied on arrival.

"Nevertheless, do you not feel that man used to be more… carefree? I remember him as a simpleminded being, with no insult to one, of course."

"Reeeealllly? Takeru-chan's always a big meanie to me! Although I'm used to it since that's just who he is. He was super edgy back then, like- that edginess can cut through glass." Meiya stared baffled; for the life of her, she didn't understand Sumika's trendy sentence.

"…Very well, perhaps I am overthinking this… it matters not. Let us continue bath in this joyous moment."

"Yaay! Okay!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

"I'm surprised we got this set up in time, Isumi." I walked over to the Valkyries' Captain with a plate of food in hand.

"Yeah, me too. It was good thinking on Kashiwagi's part when she suggested we hang that Christmas tree by the antennas." She was referring to our cardboard cut-out of a pine tree used as decoration, it was strapped to an antenna sticking out of the Bridge.

"How's the food?"

"Oh the cake is great, I ate two slices. There's also the fried chicken, you see how Akane is gulping down those one leg at a time? She really loves them."

"-This fried chicken is soooooo gooooood! Haruka! Tae! Chizuru! Try it! Try it-try-it TRRRY IT!" There was a perfect example screaming her head off about KFC.

"I can see that, ain't it nice to have free food laid now like this?"

"I agree, it's decent knowing we still get to enjoy pleasantries… hopefully we can make it last."

"Of course we will, that's what we're here for."

"Ah… haha, yeah, you're right on that one. Let me get you a drink, be right back." I watched Isumi as she made her way through the crowded deck, the constant chatter ringed in my ears. This was joy, a sense of happiness I thought I no longer had the right to bear.

"Here, Shirogane. I would get you beer, but we both have to pilot tomorrow."

"Nah, this'll do… although…! Do throw it better next time!" I sniggered lightly, a can of soda sailed above my head, making me reach out before it could headshot someone else outta nowhere.

"Er, my bad. Poor aim." It was understandable, everyone misses sometime or another.

Under the cool night sky, we stood together, not much in the progress of conversation. We just stood there, each minding a business of their own. Surveying this scenery before us, it was inevitable we wouldn't be coming back to the same number. Yet that was normal, to us, that was what we supposed must happen.

"Hey, look there… is that… Kagami and the Russian?" Isumi pulled my attention to two figures standing under a spotlight.

"…What in the fuck are they doing!?" The two espers were wearing crazily skimpy outfits barely covering their bodies; this commotion caused a big gathering of on-watchers who were undressing their already revealing figure with their eyes.

Not allowed. Even if their Christmas underwear were on point and awfully proactive, Sumika wasn't permitted to show her body around like that. As for Barchenowa, that was Bridges' mess to deal with.

"I gotta take care of this."

"Go, you." And went ahead I did.

"Hiii, everyoneee! It's okay to take picture— ah, Takeru-chan! What do you think of our costumes!?" Seeing me coming, Sumika stopped posting for a minute to welcome me.

"Whose idea was this?"

"Kei-san's! She said we would look amazing in these clothes!" I saw Ayamine slowly margin her way outside the circle of bystanders.

"Ayamine!" My shout of her name made the girl stop.

"What?"

"You're about to be fucked."

"Do it… you won't." She showed a fast playful scorn my way before disappearing.

"Change out of that, Sumika. How're you not cold?"

"Eh? Is it really that cold?"

"-It is! Please let me leave, Sumika! I'm cold!" That was Barchenowa voicing her own protest.

"Now give me a kiss and go, I'll do damage control here."

"Ah, okay!" Following that, we had a passionate make-out session before I broke every fucker's camera.

—

"Emm, so Shirogane, is Kagami your girlfriend?"

"Arrr… maybe? She's more like a real-life sex doll."

"Jesus, because treating women like that'll support you a long way in life."

"JK, kidding. Yeah, she's my girlfriend." That was a pleasant exchange after I came back to Isumi.

"Thought so… then what happened to you and Mitsurugi? Got dumped?" Isumi's misunderstand must be quite common for anyone discerning my relationship status.

"Not the case, she's with me as well."

"Ehh? Wait, what?! So what does that mean?"

"I got a harem!"

"That's not true, stop being so creepy."

"I wasn't though." Awkward silence followed once Isumi realized how earnest I was.

"…Oh wow, you're a very despicable man, some could say you're respectable… but mostly despicable."

"Nothing pleasures my heart like hearing such praise from you, I am touched." Jokingly, I took a bow as manners.

"Please… don't say those words, they represent a different thing now." Merciless as always.

"You're so judgemental! I am very hurt by how unaccepting you are, Isumi!"

"Aggrr… whatever, Shirogane. As long as your… interests don't interfere with your combat ability, I won't say anything. But also, don't involve me." It could be me, however I felt like Isumi rejected my harem invite just then.

"You're crushing my soul right now, woman! Like bam! My feels! All my feels! And to think I was so generous in playing your route until now! So does that mean I don't have a chance with you?" This was a vital detail which required confirmation.

"No chance, Shirogane. We don't match at all." Fuck.

"Guess that's true, we're very opposite people, Isumi. You and I would make the exact opposite decisions in battle." In candidness, I noted and admitted our different styles.

"…I actually have a question, Shirogane… say; if you were trapped behind enemy lines all by yourself with two choices. Either try to fight your way out with tiny chance at survival… but fail the mission, or accomplish the mission with your life… what would you pick?"

I wasn't ready for this, her question on its own I could answer that easily. I didn't foresee Isumi inquiring about a topic so filled with… my past, it was unnerving to me. Even though I knew this to be the work of causality, I couldn't react for some time.

"It's a weird topic, right? Forget I said anything." Isumi planned on dropping it as she took a slip of her drink.

"Obviously I would fight, no matter how slim my chances are, I won't give up. I will live so I can keep fighting, I'm not dying." My answer was too simple, and too unchanging.

"…Thought so, but how about the mission? By surviving, you'd have failed it."

"I'll just live and think of a different way on finishing it. Nothing is set in stone, as long as we're alive." That was my truth, my commitment.

"Umm… I'm a coward, Shirogane. So if that really do happen, I'm sure I'll finish it, that way my chances of achieving the goal is higher. You're not me, Shirogane. You're willing to gamble everything, and you don't even doubt your odds. You're that confident in your victory."

It was ironic, the one who didn't want to die was seen as a brave man, yet the one who gave her life to the cause was a weakling. How much I wanted to laugh.

"I won't die, Isumi. I can't die; not here, not until I win."

"I can tell that. Your eyes, they reflect a will already folded to steel. You're not here to lose, Shirogane. Only glory, only victory…" I was patted on the shoulders, Isumi stared at me intensely, her features were gentle and smoothing to my sight.

"Don't worry, Isumi. I share my spoils." And now, we could only smile after plodding through such a heavy discussion.

"Ahaha, you're strong, Shirogane; you and your team. I won't ask how or why… so please, if you can, protect people's dreams." I always known this responsibility was mine. I chose this world to save, so I will see through it to the end.

—

"No, you fooool! That means your sister'll have a giant advantage over you then!"

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"Look, if I'm that guy. I'd be 'hmm, I wonder what Michiru is doing these days, although she's probably fine since she's with the UN. On the other hand, 'insert your sister's name here' could be in danger, considering that she is going to be part of the biggest Operation EVEEER!"

"Hmmm… you might have a point there." No shit I did.

After snickering off our pervious grimly topic, Isumi and I once again moved onto relationship problems. As in the guy she had in mind was also the target of her three sisters, also the youngest one happened to be part of Whiskey Unit.

"So here's what you need to do, right? Assuming your guy's a dense asshole; just strip and go. Easy peasy lemon squeezy! Nothing gets the message across like a naked girl delivering it."

My proposal turned Isumi redder than a Canadian maple leaf during autumn, she was too flustered to even think of a reply for a good two minutes as I enjoyed her reaction.

"Ahhhaaa… that… could that… work!?" Even better, she was seriously considering my recommendation.

"Absolutely, you just have to make sure he knows you're not cheap… still a virgin, right?"

"Ah— ye-y-yeah."

"Good, so when you two sleep together, don't act too experienced in it. Even if you seen it before in porn or whatever, pretend like you have no idea how to do it, but are very determined to get it on. Like- 'it's my first time, okay~? Be gentle~' or say stuff like 'I won't do this with anyone other than you~!"

"I feel like those tips…" She was still too embarrassed to speak properly.

"Be fervent, not by sex but by him. So you want to act lik—"

"Okay, stoooop! Masaki'd just think of me as a creep if I do that!" Right, right, that was the dude's name. And now I had an even better opportunity to troll her.

"Aaaaah, that's what he's called! HEY! Somebody! Give me a tab!" A couple of seconds later, one of our military PDAs came flying in from the sky.

"Hey! What're you up to!?"

"Let's see~ with him being your childhood friend, he's age probably be within three years to yours. And because you just called him Masaki, that makes it a forename. Not a lotta people are called that, I shall find him right now!" Isumi wasn't having a good night anymore.

"Nooo! …Let go of me, Shiroganeeee!" I wrapped my arm around Isumi's shoulders to prevent her interference as I scrolled down the profile of Eishis named Masaki within the IJA around our age.

"Is it this guy? …or this guy? Maybe thi— AHA! It is this guy!" When Isumi's eyes lingered on one of the pictures longer than the rest, I called her out. Her succeeding feedback established my theory.

"Stooooop! Th-this isn't y-your business!" I batted a blind eye to her feeble whinge.

"Let's see~ let's see! Maejima Masaki, age; twenty-one. Imperial Japanese Army Second Lieutenant, this's good stuff, yo! Looks like a talented sharpshooter from the profile…! Wait, hold on…" Our joyful mood had to take a turn, as I found information not so worthy of celebration.

"Haa… did you finally give up, Shiroga—"

"He's part of Operation 21, did you know that?" The weight of my news stunned Isumi solid.

"Eh…? Really?"

"Yeah, Akeno Base's 31st Tactical Armoured Battalion, callsign Juncture 2. He's part of Whisky Unit as well, looks to be piloting a Gekishin… your opinions?"

"I… didn't know that… Masaki is going to be at Sado? That's… not— I gotta go, thanks, Shirogane." With immediate haste, Isumi chugged down her soda and took the steps to leave.

"Hey! I can also search up your sister's unit too!"

"…No, that would distract me too much. I can't have that." In the long-run that was a logical decision.

"Later then, merry Christmas."

"You too, merry Christmas." After our exchange, Isumi disappeared into the mass.

"Hrmm… too bad then, the information is right here." Nothing left to do, I did examine Isumi's younger sibling. The girl was found rather quickly as I had a sense of déjà vu when I saw her name.

'Isumi Akira, IJA Second Lieutenant. Akeno Base's 133rd Tactical Armoured Regiment, Callsign Cracker 3. Okay, whatever. She didn't want to know.' Still, this wasn't very interesting now that Isumi already left.

—

"Okay, connect that cord to here and… we should be good. Did you check the loudspeakers, Kazama?"

"I have, the base still needs some tuning, other than that there's no problem." She replied back, boosting a friendly smile as a bonus.

"I'll get on it."

Peeking at the clock, it was almost midnight. We were onto the finale of our party, singing some Christmas corals together as we welcomed the tick signalling the end of December 24. Hopefully, at least half of the guys here have a knack for vocals, or else it was going to be one of those singing sessions.

"You know, Captain, I'm a bit surprised you can play piano." Playing was an overemphasized word, it was more like I knew when to smack which keys to make this black box make sound.

"Well, I had lots of time to mess around. Thought I'd pick up some skill other than seducing lesbians." Whether she understood it or not, this was an open challenge to Kazama.

"Oh… ara, isn't that impressive? To be skillful at this, quick reaction and swift motions are very important."

"Of course, that's what I excel at."

"Huhuhu, then I look forward to your playing." Were we still talking about piano? Or sex?

Throughout my years, I have taken Kazama many times. Yet even to this day, I couldn't figure out her true motive. The aura of mystery which encircled her was virtually impossible to decrypt, perhaps one day I will understand what tugs Kazama's heartstrings; for now, she was a bisexual who was open to explorations.

"On a serious note, where did you learn to play your violin, Kazama?"

"Errm… I can't quite remember. I was born in Kyoto with my two parents, we moved to Yokohama for a few years when I was around sixteen before the BETA invasion. But I was quickly conscripted after that, my family went back to Kyoto and… well, it was Kyoto…" So her parents were dead, how delightful.

"Welp, that's not a happy end."

"Won't you normally apologize for asking that, Captain?" Playfully, Kazama took a stab at me.

"What? I asked where you learned violin, not a sob story. Besides, it's not like I killed your family." I would spend my entire life expressing regret if that was the case, I ain't no BETA.

"Huhu, a very… unrestricted man you are, Capt. Shirogane. Anyway, I probably learned to play when I was young. However there weren't many chances for me to practice."

"Ah, life gets busy. And once we're in here, this here'll be all we're told to practice for." We were soldiers wholly aiming to exceed in the art of war.

"Indeed, but now, it's finally leading up to something." Kazama gazed far out, over our music equipment and in the direction of Sado.

"You're looking forward to it?"

"Of course, they took everything from me… just like what they did to everyone else. I'm not special, so I'll seek revenge…. like everyone else." I didn't need to see her irises to know there was a blazing fire burning in Kazama's heart. A person's demeanor could not be anymore deceiving.

"Tomorrow, there will be blood; but today, we celebrate."

"Agreed."

—

"~Silent night, holy night. ~All is calm, all is bright.

~Round yon virgin, mother and child. ~Holy infant so tender and mild,

~Sleep in heavenly peace ~sleep in heavenly peace."

I played along to the slow melody of Kazama's string, the crowd of soldiers beneath us hummed along lovingly. From here, I could spot Meiya, Sumika and Kasumi, Class rep and Ayamine, Tama and Mikoto. They were all here, they all appeared so peaceful and happy.

"~Silent night, holy night. ~Shepherds quake at the sight.

~Glories stream from heaven afar, ~heavenly hosts sing alleluia.

~Christ, the saviour is born. ~Christ, the saviour is born"

Piano was not something I would claim to be good at, so fortunately for me, this song wasn't hard to play. Same could be said for our audience, perhaps many of them didn't know the lyrics, but it was the passion that counted. Ever so rarely, we enjoyed our harmony as a generation altogether. A species whose existence was in danger, yet a species which haven't given up hope.

"~Silent night, holy night. ~Son of god, love's pure light.

~Radiant beams from thy holy face. ~With the dawn of redeeming grace

Jesus, lord, at thy birth~"

Many will die tomorrow, lives forever lost to the darkness. However, they would be names we remember at heart, souls guiding our path to the future. I believed in our victory, because I wanted to believe. We had physical strength, and now we had mental assurance.

"Jesus~ lord~ at thy birth~…"

People deserved hope, people deserved to live. I wouldn't declare myself to be the world's saviour, but I definitely am trying my hardest to become one. As a hollow man, who once forfeited the world's future for his own; it was my goal to save those I loved, so it became my destiny to save our world.

The bells struck twelve times, signalling midnight.

 **December 25, 2001**

"…Uuu… I cannot believe I allowed myself to lose at this competition…! Such vexation." No matter what I tried, Sumika still showed scissors. Literally nothing I could do for Meiya.

"Yaay! I win! Now hold the mistletoe, Meiya-san!"

"Ummmm…! Fine!" Meiya lifted a hoop of leaves over Sumika's head as she pulled me in close for a traditional kiss.

 _You Happy yet?_ I called for a pause using ESP.

" _Eh? You taste so good though, Takeru-chan!_ "

 _I know, but look how sad Meiya is getting. She's about to cry, I think._ That wouldn't be a good way to boost our morale.

"—ummmmura! Okay, let's switch, Meiya-san!"

"Eh, really?"

"Sure! It's your turn now!" As much as I bullied Sumika over the course of decades, she really was a kind girl.

"Aaah, you have my gratitude, Sumika." So they swapped roles, now it was Sumika holding those plants while Meiya and I shared a sentimental kiss. The inside of her mouth was… well, wet. Describing this kind of stuff is so embarrassing, I refuse.

"Mmnnnmaa… Takeru… I love you."

"Same."

"Ah! Me too, me too!" A happy harem was so good, 10/10, would recommend.

"Alright, it's really time to go. Meiya, gather up the others."

"Understood." She was reluctant to release me, but eventually Meiya still obeyed order and left.

"Then I'll head for the XG-70, give me a RHIB, Takeru-chan!"

"Fuck off, we don't have enough Zodiacs as is. Take a Jetski." A Zodiac could hold around ten people, I couldn't let her waste our already limited resources like this.

"Eh? But Kasumi-chan needs to go with me too!"

"Our military one can hold two, and she can ride it back."

"Can she?"

"We'll find out." I had faith in Kasumi's height, she should be able to reach the handles.

—

"Actually, tell the rest to go on without me. There should be a PWC left for me to get back to our ship."

"Errm? Why, Takeru-chan?" We were only metres away from descending the deck when I saw someone standing at the very front of Osumi, her figure forced me to turn back and check.

"I can't… just leave Hayase like that, she acted weird the last time I saw her too. Sorry, Sumika, go ahead."

"Takeru-chan… you really are a kind person, that's something I cannot change. I'll get going then! See you tomorrow!" Maybe my selfish action injured Sumika somehow, but I trusted she would understand.

"See you, and merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas!"

—

"Sup."

"Oh, Shirogane, sup." And that was it for the greetings.

Hayase sat by her lonesome on the very edge of the Assault Ship's deck, her feet dangling under the railings. She appeared distraught; even from where I was hundreds of metres away, shaded by the colour of the night, she still looked melancholy.

"You drinking?"

"Rarely, but yeah." As seen by the almost empty beer can in her hand.

"I don't need to tell you we got an operation in like- seven hours, what's on your mind?" To me, only the biggest concerns in our universe would make Hayase drink alcohol.

"Hey… did you always serve in the UN, Shirogane?" We went to a classified place real fast, real hard.

"Arr… not really no, I jumped around." After careful contemplation, I decided telling Hayase a little about myself wasn't a bad idea.

"Where else have you been?"

"Promise not to tell?"

"You know me." For this once, I believed in the usual blabbering Hayase, her saddened air was a rarity.

"Been with the Imperials, Honour Guards, Americans, Brits, short while with the Krauts and surprisingly also the Ruskies; hated learning other languages though, still can't speak German or Russian."

"Huh, then what languages can you speak?" What a dull question all of a sudden.

"English, Japanese, a bit of French and Chinese."

"That's pretty good, me say only Japanese." Terrible grammar was used, but considering how drunk Hayase's ass was, I couldn't fault her.

"We're off topic, why are you drinking today?" She flustered her glance away, not wanting to explore a more personal theme. I waited quite a while for her to start opening up.

"…Do you think… you ever heard of the name Narumi Takayuki?" What that was, that was actually an undisclosed shocker to me.

Did I know the name, of course I did. Funny enough, I first heard her murmuring it during the very first night I nailed Hayase. It was a legendary period which through months of blood, sweat and tears I was finally able to crack her impenetrable armour… fugitively and literally.

Can confirm, still a virgin.

Anyway, so it got seriously awkward when she called out to some guy named Takayuki as we were getting down. It was a total mood killer, I pulled through but it wasn't the same afterwards.

"Urr… no." For now, that was all I wanted to say.

"Yeah, thought so. Haha, no reason you should know him, right? Guy did die two years ago, after all." This information was also divulged to me some time before by Hayase herself… or it was actually Suzumiya, couldn't remember.

"Okay. Shout out to that guy, how did he go?"

"Nuked by G-Bomb, Op Lucifer." Shit happens.

"Welp, R.I.P I guess." Hayase stared at me from the floor, an unclear gaze was the source of my discomfort. She didn't seemed to enjoy my sense of humour, but who was to blame since she brought up this out of place name?

"So you really don't care at all."

"Should I care about every guy that gets popped? I don't even care about all the dudes we're losing tomorrow." A strange compulsion within told me to add that last bit of unneeded intel, as if I desired for Hayase's despite.

"…You're not him, Shirogane… Takayuki wasn't an asshole."

"What, are we stating the obvious? You're also not a BETA, motherfucking surprise." It was pointless, I didn't understand what shot through Hayase's mind.

"Damn, you be a real piece of shit. But for some reason… I don't dislike that…" She took another swig of her plastic can only to discover its content had been emptied already.

"Thank you…?"

"That's right, you ain't Takayuki… and Takayuki is dead. He's dead, he's dead…" She repeated the truth to herself, perhaps for the purpose of imprinting it firmly within her brain.

"Hey… for real, are you okay, Hayase? If you don't feel well I can ask Isumi to take you off the team tomorrow, you can't be going into battle half-psycho." From my heart, I was trying to be nice, if only I could recall how to do that properly.

"Nah… I'll be okay. Gotta fuck up BETA's shit tomorrow, how can I not be okay?" Hayase swayed her head around, forcefully patting herself on the temple.

"Well, watch yourself then. It's getting a bit too late, I need to get back before the tide stops me—" My sentence wasn't finished before she threw the can into the sea with all her might.

"GOD DAMNIT! AGGRRA! Fuck off, Takayuki! Stop haunting me, I got some pain to deal out! Hooo! FUCK! All right! Let's get going then!" Faster than ever, Hayase leaped onto her two feet and flashed me a wide, silly grin to display her health.

"Excellent, you dumb bimbo! I seriously gotta bounce now, later." I chuckled dryly, not too sure whether it was correct to laugh at her recovery.

"Sure, dickface. Merry Christmas." We resolved her problem unexpectedly quick.

"Same, Merry Christmas."

—

"Did you wait all this time… for me, Meiya?"

"Of course, I cannot allow myself to leave you, my love." Hearing that made me feel good in all the right places.

Passing over another quick kiss, we boarded the last jetski left by the ship's pier. I took control of the steering handle while Meiya leaned against my back, her hair felt smooth on my neck.

Cold, sea water splashed lightly on our skin. The moon was still high above the sky, its luminescence created a beautiful scenery to our ride. Millions of ripples recoiled elatedly over the mirror image of Meiya and I, as if the endless ocean spilt apart just for us to reach the destination.

"Look, isn't the moon beautiful tonight?" Knowing Meiya, it was impossible for her to miss my innuendo.

"Takeru, to find bliss within the prison of our time attested to be a difficult task for many, yet I am at my happiest. Still, if my time were to call me, I would struggle intently against that fate until the bitter end…" Without seeing her face, Meiya said, determined in her words. It was an anti-death flag of sorts, an infrequent find.

"Can you shorten that for me?"

"I'm so happy… I could die right now. Yet I can feel it, it is not my time. Nor will it ever be."

"Meiya… you know your stuff."

"Huhuhu… such joyous moment… this is experience I would not receive had I stayed a shadow. Answer me, Takeru. When the duty of my blood calls for my return, what will you do?"

Light as a feather, Meiya attuned her fluffy hair on my head. She eyed high into the atmosphere, seeking an answer from me that wouldn't even need to be asked.

"I will grab you by your waist, Meiya. And pull you in for a deep French one in front of all the people watching, letting them know who you really belong to."

"Hahaha… I find that response satisfactory. Then tell me, for this perquisite which I own; what do you demand from me?"

"Live, Meiya. Live and protect me; live and protect your friends; and also, live to protect your dream." That was all I ever wanted. To overcome the collapse of our dying world; not to overcome death, but the burden of it.

"I vow to you once more, Takeru. I shall live until the end; as your keenest sword, as your stoutest shield."

"Then what's your dream, Meiya? Have you gained one, now that you're no longer a mere shadow?" It took her some time to reply to my inquiry.

"My dream…" I kept my silence to allow Meiya the time to think.

" _Kotabi_ … sonata no kono nagai yume… _warawa_ kanarazu mamoru. (This time… this long dream of yours… I will definitely protect it.)" I was certain; this was the first time in history Meiya ever addressed herself using this pronoun.

 **Author's note**

Too long chapter, nothing to say.

BETA done by chad001


	40. Missing 21 Grams I

**I**** A******

 **December 25, 2001 Operation 21 139 minutes out**

 **Osumi-class Assault Ship, UN-Imperial 2nd Fleet, Kunisaki**

"—mooou… you know you can't just contact me whenever you feel like, nee-san!"

"—fufufu, I wanted to see how you're doing, we haven't talked in a while." Calling her two hours before the official attack initiated wasn't too wise of a decision.

"Haa… can't you be arrested for using Ichigaya like that?"

"Huhu, don't worry, this is an exception for this one time." As always, the Ministry of Defence utilized their own set of rules.

"Well, thanks for calling, nee-san. How're things for you? Is it getting busier these days?"'

"A little, yeah. But I'm mostly filling out paperwork in front of an office desk, I'm afraid my muscles are deteriorating."

"Ahahaha! That's the exact opposite problem to what we have! That's what you get for going against our family trend!" The young girl mocked her sister for taking the boring job, the boring and safe job.

"Shouldn't it be the rest of you who didn't follow my example?"

"Yeah, right! You say it like everybody can work to be a spy!"

"You think working for the ministry is so easy, don't you? I spend more time holding a receiver than a pistol, half of the time they don't even let you be armed in the HQ." Reaching this point in their conversation, both sides realized the small talk was on its deathbed.

"…Speaking of receivers, Yayoi-nee. Has Michiru-nee called you these days? To check up on things?" Her segway was skilled.

"It wasn't really keeping touch on anything, more of a report from her."

"…I see, then did she at least say what's happening to her?"

"That she did, Michiru is still in the UN's instructional unit like before. There probably won't be much… changes for her."

"…Okay."

"Shouldn't it be the best? Having no news is good news."

"Yeah… you're right." For the upcoming battle, she alone must bear the weight for four.

"Say… Akira, we should gather for New Year, go to a restaurant or something. The four of us plus Masaki-kun, it has been a while since we last met all together."

"REALLY!? Awesome! We can have a big hotpot! And eat some Mochi! -And then eat some more Mochi! -And also I can kick Masaki-chan's butt at Hanetsuki and draw some stupid ink on his face!" A tense pause followed her excited expectancy on New Year's fun.

"Masaki… chan, is that what you call him now?"

"Eh-? Y-yeah, I just thought that— err… I kinda…" Suddenly at a loss for words, she couldn't imagine a reply.

"I like that, Akira. It suits you, it suits the both of you." At first the young girl was afraid of her sister's reaction, but those words of consent carried only the truest blessings along.

"Yayoi-nee… I'm sorr—"

"No. Never apologizes for that. We all promised; when it comes to Masaki-kun, we're all equals. That way we can all do our best and face each other proudly no matter what future has in store. Congratulations, Akira, I really do wish you two the best."

"Yayoi-nee…! Thank you so much! For always being there! You, Michiru-nee and Marika too! All of you… have been so kind to me!" Countless emotions crashed through the girl's teeming empathy, a humble victor in love was the least she could be to repay her sisters.

"Akira… you're an adult now, even if your age disagrees, you're truly an adult now. I have nothing else to teach you, nothing left to give you… please, stay safe out there… for yourself. Everything you'll do from now on… is all for the sake of your future."

"Yayoi-nee…" There was little the teary-eyed girl could say other than her caring sister's name.

"Me, Michiru, Marika and you; we're all separate individuals, we all have our own lives to live, our own dreams to attain. When we're together, we're a family; but if we're isolated, then we do what we must for ourselves while remembering we're always a family."

"I promise I'll come back home safely—"

"Fufufu, now, now. You know you shouldn't say that, Akira. That's an obvious death-flag, don't make such promises." In a way, this out-of-place comment during a serious intimate discussion was just the perfect representation for her household.

"Hahaha! I'll say it like this then! I'll fight today for me and Masaki-chan's future! After that, we'll all fight for our future together!"

"There you go, Akira. Until next time, I love you."

"I love you too, Yayoi-nee!"

 **Jinguuji Marimo**

 **December 25, 2001, Operation 21**

 **Yamato-class Battleship, UN-Imperial 2nd Fleet Flagship, Shinano**

"—Admiral Kozawa, this is Abe of the Shinano. All ships in the 2nd Fleet are ready for battle. We're merely awaiting the order to attack." Over the loud chatter of the Shinano's bridge, its Captain radioed his Admiral for an update.

"—good… you carry the vanguard of the ground forces in this operation. Do not fail us." The Captain of the Heavy-Cruiser Mogami spoke back, his voice indicated age and wisdom. And through the headpiece lent to Marimo, she too could hear their conversation.

It had been too long, Sadogashima had been lost for too long. Time healed all wounds, but this was one of the cases when people did not forget their scar. And now, partially thanks to Yuuko's genius, the people could fight back.

"—UN Orbit Bombers are dropping re-entry bombs!" As one of Shinano's Operator called out, Marimo witnessed it firsthand. A blanket of metal shells covered out the sky for a short few seconds before they were ripped apart by the concentrated fire of Laser-class.

"Heavy metal particle density rising!" However, that was all part of the plan.

"—all ships, target the Kawada coastline— FIRE!" Shells, thousands of them shot out from ships of unalike sizes and shapes. Although all had one resemblance, and that was the Z-flag raised high on each and every one of them.

—

"—Maj. Jinguuji, it's time. The 17th Tactical Armoured Unit has secured a beachhead." Marimo saw the Stingrays in action herself. Imperial Marine Crop's A-6J Tactical Surface Attackers followed in the wake of the artillery, remaining BETA survivors were lit up to provide a relatively safe foothold.

"Understood, the Laser-class presence won't be lowered anymore. -Tell all Whiskey callsigns to begin assault immediately." Understanding her role, Marimo passed an order on to one of the bridge Operatives.

"—HQ to all Whiskey callsigns, begin unloading all Armoured Divisions. —repeat, Whisky Unit, being unloading all Armoured Divisions." Thunderous roars of war echoed repeatedly over the coastline, now was the time for these Eishis to leave their mark in the history of Japan.

"Major, it has been on my mind for quite a while. Do you know the purpose of that TSF-Carrier?" When Marimo was intensely watch the action unfold in front of her eyes, the Captain of Shinano was preoccupied by a separate matter.

"That's the Shokaku-class Carrier, Hiryu… I was not informed of its participation in this operation."

"Neither was I or Admiral Kozawa, and in the 3rd Fleet there is a Zuikaku present." Suppressing her curiosity, Marimo got a feeling she knew what was going on.

"—Assault Ship Takao, taking heavy damage from enemy laser fire!" Marimo's half-finished chat ended abruptly when another operative apprised her on the state of battle.

"—Whiskey Bravo 1 is requesting artillery strike by Point T-44-34! They reported additional Heavy Laser-class!"

"Damn… even though we have continually bombarded that area. Could this be the result of limiting our shell usage?" Captain Abe of Shinano mentioned a change of the plan prior to launching. For reasons unrevealed, UN requested for only fifty-five percent of the ammo reserve to be fired, instead of the original seventy.

"—Assault Ship Usuki sunk! Assault Ship Tsukumi taking exposure to multiple lasers! Whiskey Unit casualty at thirteen percent!" More and more of the landers were being shot down before they could unload the TSFs inside.

"Continue bombardment of Yawata and Kawada! We have to eliminate the Laser-class!" Captain Abe shouted another order.

"At this rate, there won't be enough of Whiskey Unit to continue the operation! Why are we limited on ordnance supplies…!?" This entire situation was vexing to Marimo, it hadn't been an hour yet and the fatality rate was already climbing too high.

"—so Admiral, I press this button here and talk?"

"—yes, XO Kouzuki, you're already speaking into the microphone." When a sudden female voice broke the tension of Shinano's crew, only Marimo was mildly surprised by what the person had said.

"Ahha! Okay, everyone. Two Squadrons will be launching shorty from the TSF-Carrier Hiryu to support Whiskey Unit, just thought you ship Skippers should know." Since the last time they met, Yuuko somehow turned even more casual than before.

"—wait, XO Kouzuki! Launching from Carrier will place them right in the Laser-class's line of sight!" First to reply was Captain Abe, understandably.

"Ahuhuhu, please, just watch."

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Opeartion 21, 32 minutes in**

 **Mogami-class Heavy Cruiser, UN-Imperial 3rd Fleet Flagship, Mogami**

"XO Kouzuki, please, I ask you to not use our communication system next time. I will announce your report."

"Ahaha, sorry about that, Admiral. I've been a bit… unhampered these days."

"Hum, that's not a problem Vice-Commander. Your sense of humour is refreshing." Yuuko laughed lightly to that compliment.

"Piatif, is Eclipse Unit ready to go?"

"—yes, ma'am. There aren't any issues with the TSFs themselves." The Su-47s were only part of this equation.

"Get me Kagami and Yashiro."

"Yes, ma'am."

A few seconds passed and Yuuko's earpiece was connected to the 00 unit via an encrypted channel.

"—aha! Kouzuki-sensei! Hallo, hallo!" Happy as always, the pink-haired supercomputer welcomed her.

"Kagami, are you synced with Eclipse?"

"Yep, I'm feeling them!"

"How about you, Yashiro?"

"Da, svyaz… priznannyy. Ustroystvo rabotayushchiy." Ever so infrequently, Yashiro would throw Yuuko for a loop.

"Why's she speaking Russian, Kagami? Was that even proper Russian?"

"Eh? Is Kasumi-chan speaking Russian? Anyway, she said the connection is established, we're good to go!"

"Haa… whatever, once you're ready, take-off."

"Roger, roger! Time for a round of Laserjagd!"

 **Jinguuji Marimo**

 **Operation 21, 45 minutes in**

 **Yamato-class Battleship, UN-Imperial 2nd Fleet Flagship, Shinano**

"They're really doing it… they're launching TSF Squadrons from a Carrier."

This was the apex of incongruity, sending a two Squadron worth of fighters without cover against the Sadogashima Hive defence. Taking off from Carriers meant they will be high in the air on approach, giving the Laser-class an even easier shot than normal.

"We'll have to wait and see, Captain. It won't be long." Still, Yuuko was known for her outrageous and seemingly foolish acts.

"Yes, there they are." Flying by the bridge window, Marimo spotted sixteen figures soaring past in the blink of an eye. Their white camo blended nicely into the sky above, but their design was not something seen before on this battlefield.

"Those're Soviet Berkuts! Are the Russians involved in this operation?!"

"If they're, we aren't meant to know it." Acting more calmly than Marimo, the Captain added his insight.

"But still, to involve the Soviets…"

"…It matters little at this point, their performance right now should be what we emphasise." The time to ponder the past was for later.

Marimo watched, so did everyone else attending in the bridge of Battleship Shinano, and no doubt the many other warships of the 2nd Fleet had their view glued on this set of Su-47s. What will they be witnessing? An imprudent method of suicide or maybe an astonishing miracle? Marimo already made her decision since the start.

"—Berkut Squadrons will be entering Heavy Laser range in five…! Four…! Three…! Two…! …Oh… my god!" That was the only correct reaction to what the entire crew just perceived.

The hatful beams struck high, like an unbending saber gunning for the death of its opponents. The lasers were aimed, yet the lasers did not hit. Even though the BETA never miss, the lasers still didn't meet their mark.

"…They dodged it…! Did you see that as well, Maj. Jinguuji!?"

"Yeah… yeah, I saw. I never thought it was possible. To avoid the laser using an opposite-vector thrust, it has never been done before…"

By ushering its Jump units and Shoulder Boosters in different directions, the Berkuts spun. Like a gorgeous dancer of ballet, the Su-47s performed a deed never before performed by man. Their flawless movement led them away from death and further into the fray; it was truly beautiful, it was an art of war.

"Captain! They're entering the artillery zone!" Another Operator noticed how the Su-47s had no intention of stopping.

"…If Lasers can't hit them, we don't have a chance, keep firing."

Every time, it was by centimetres or even millimetres, but they lasers still missed. All sixteen TSFs moved as one, not a single maneuver wasted or one propulsion extra. The feared Laser-class of the BETA were rendered useless as they lined up for slaughter. And the Berkuts killed, faster than ever.

"—the Laser-class presence are rapidly decreasing from the shoreline! The Berkut Squadrons have cleared out Yawata and Kawada Towns, along with Old Takatsuka!"

"Two minutes, that Battalion did what our gunships could not do in half an hour, they done it in two minutes." There was a reaction from Captain Abe, the man was reasonably astounded.

"…Yuuko… where did you get this?" Marimo murmured to herself under the noisy cover of Shinano's shouting staff.

"— …which unit is that? Russian? Admiral Kozawa, have you been informed, sir?" The ship Captain asked his superior next.

"—wow, there're a lotta people talking. Everyone, please. Calm down and listen, this's Vice-Commander Kouzuki of Yokohama, by the way." Of course, only Yuuko would ever pull such a feat, thought Marimo.

"Okay, thank you everybody. What you just saw was the Eclipse Unit from Alternative IV, two Squadrons of… well, this's classified so… yeaaa. Moving on, the Eclipse Unit will now continue forward to eliminate the Laser-class at Old Sawane and Takase, Whiskey Unit should follow. Kouzuki out."

"Captain, Whiskey Unit casualties has stopped at fourteen percent. They've secured Old Yawata and Kawada, currently awaiting orders!" A while after Yuuko left their comms, an Operator updated Marimo.

"Is this the true might of Alternative IV? I am awed, Maj. Jinguuji."

"…I am the same, Captain. We should be glad they're friendlies."

"Quite, I cannot begin to imagine the power XO Kouzuki holds, but this is a chance like no other." Marimo too realized, there were better things to do than still be in shock.

"Tell all Whiskey Unit, move up to Takatsuka. Follow closely behind the Berkuts and provide support."

"Yes, ma'am!"

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 57 minutes in**

 **Shokaku-class TSF-Carrier, Zuikaku**

"—zatmeniye tri, shest', odinnadtsat', odin, prodvizheniye… uchastok J-32-47… atakovat' protivnik." Like- I didn't even speak Russian and still think what Kasumi said was bullshit. Seriously, pretty sure she counted 'one' last.

"—holy shit, Kasumi. I hear Russian from you again it's gonna be two months of celibacy for your slutty ass!"

"…Eclipse 2, 9, 4; Fox 2, target, Sector F-63-12, hostile Company." Much better. Also, this confirmed again Kasumi was rather motivated by sex. Not going to lie, it was all my doing.

"—HQ to Archangel 1, Operation has entered Phase 3. Echo Unit is preparing for landing in Ryoutsu Bay. Bombardment of Old Ryoustu City has begun."

"—Arc 1 copy, ready to launch." My ass was itching for some action after sitting so long in my cockpit.

"—attention, all units. We're taking off, two by two follow regular formation. Archangel 5, you're up wit—"

"—Eclipse 10, minor damage to left Jump Unit. Further deployment impossible, Eclipse 4, 7 commencing extraction." It was Kasumi who cut me off. That in itself wasn't upsetting, but what pissed me off was she did it just to report to Sumika.

"—arrga! They shot down Eclipse-chan 10! AGGRUURA! Cyka-cyka BLYAT!" Did I hear that right? Did she really just say that?

"…Pfffff! AHAHAhAHAHaHAhAAA! My sides! Gun Sweepers! You go first! HAHAHAHAHA! Go! Just go!" Sumika's expression paired up with her nerd rage was just too much for me.

"Understood, Arc 3 locked for propulsion."

"Arc 2 locked for propulsion! Gonna kill all of them! Takeru-chan! I'm popping Prafka once we're in combat zone, okay!?" This was angry Sumika, very similar to hyped Sumika, except for some negligible differences.

"What did sensei say?"

"She said I can use it whenever I want!"

"Then sure, go right on ahead. No puffing smoke though, BETA don't have eyes."

"Alllright! I can kill them all faster! Round two of our hunt!"

 **Kagami Sumika**

 **Sadogashima, Ryoutsu Bay**

"The lives we lived—!"

"—which is the pinnacle of people's grievance."

"Every death—!"

"—time unforgotten, ages marked by suffering."

Could it be called a poem? Sumika wasn't sure. It was what she remembered the most, the worst memories of them all. Yet they also had pleasant fragments, periods she couldn't forfeit.

"OUr ReflEcTiON, fOR tHE SAKe of PeOPLe'S SAlVatiON!…"

"-OnlY ThrougH DeatH, CaN WE SeeK People'S SalvatioN."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 62 minutes in**

 **Shokaku-class TSF-Carrier, Zuikaku**

Seeing the remote controlled Berkuts was one thing, seeing Sumika doing it personally was another. Hundreds of metres above the sea, she slew everything in sight.

She moved so fast, and killed so cleanly. It was becoming harder and harder to believe for this to be the work of that pouty girl. I saw Sumika only as a flash of dot dragging a tail of compressed air behind her, too fast to be captured by the naked eye; or any of the lasers, for that matter.

"—you girls seeing this? Like- this's not only me, right?" We were all there, watching Sumika and Kasumi doddle circles in the sky with their contrails.

"—spin to win… spin to win." Ayamine, first and foremost with that meme.

"—by firing the engines in opposite directions, they are effectively evading the lasers… this is absolutely lunatic, yet so very potent. I admire their bravery and skill, Takeru." Talking as she normally did, Meiya very professionally pointed out the pros and cons of Sumika's piloting.

"—Takeru, you sure they got this, right? I'm counting at least a dozen Laser-class firing on them, someone's going to get lucky sooner or later." Class rep, always the cautious one of our group.

"—ahA-AhAhah! WorRY nOT, ChIzuRu-cHAn!..."

"— -FoR OuR VenturE, WE HavE ControL."

I certainly wasn't assuming for team bunnies to speak back. Compared to our Yukon op, they sounded way calmer and actually communicable. Still, Class rep batted an eye at their weird accent manifested from Prafka.

"—haha, they're talking funny, Takeru!" Mikoto, making the obvious, obvious.

"—emm, is that a Kansai dialect? It sounds… fuzzy!" How Tama got Kansai from hearing that, I had no idea.

"—HQ to Archangel Lead! You're behind schedule! Please take-off now!" During our relaxing chit-chat, I forgot for a minute that we were fighting the biggest war of the 21th century.

"Oh, shit! Shit-shit! Meiya, you locked!?"

"Er- yes!"

"Go, go, go! All units, launch immediately after us! Time to earn your pay, ladies! Let's go fuck up those BETA!"

"Yes, sir!"

 **Sadogashima, Ryoutsu Bay**

 **Operation 21, 66 minutes in**

"—hostiles front! Company size BETA cluster! Counting thirty-six Destroyers and forty-two Grapplers!" Part of the spearhead, Meiya reported back the foes she saw before us.

Gilding a short distance from the Carrier, we made landfall about minutes prior and were coasting along as a group. Below our jets laid countless mutilated BETA corpses from artillery, Echo Unit or maybe Sumika; it didn't matter. All that counted was our kill tally, which should be rising rapidly any second now.

"—ookeey, Arc 6, hit them with a rod. We'll test its efficiency, only fire one." It would be nice to see Mikoto's rockets in action, thankfully, America was known for being very reliable in their weapons.

"—copy! Fox 3 on hostile BETA Company ahead, missile away!" In my rear camera, I saw Mikoto's Raptor shooting off a single guided shell from its shoulder mounted rocket container.

The AIM drew a faultless projectile arc barely over our heads, entering NoE flight through its guidance by the GPS tracker within. Half-way to target, the missile spilt apart, unleashing exactly eighteen smaller warheads for maximum kill potential.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now…!?" What could I say, it had potential.

"Permission to engage remnants?"

"Ahh… sure." Meiya cleaned up, only killing two wounded Destroyers after Mikoto's salvo.

"Jesus… one shot almost killed an entire Company!? Who made that rocket?!" Class rep was evidently taken back by the great technology.

"Murica… that was awesome." Even Ayamine was appreciating the bomb-everything tactic.

To be honest, Americans made good stuff. That was a fact. More than sixty percent of Alternative IV's funding came from those guys, and money always spoke louder than words. As long as they kept giving us cool toys to play with, everybody will be happy.

"Alright, we'll have to readjust the scoring then. Mikoto needs a nerf, she'll mop the floor with us if left unchanged."

"Ehhhh!? But I was gonna win with this too!" Clearly, she didn't know what the nerf hammer was for.

"Kasumi, read me the score value chart again." Yes, we had one before leaving base.

"— -ThreE PointerS; Fort-class, Heavy Laser-class. TwO PointerS; Grappler-class, Destroyer-class, Laser-class. ZerO FivE PointerS; Tank-class." So that left out Soldiers and Warriors, only the stupid would go for those anyway.

"Here's the change for Mikoto. Minus one point for every kill get with missiles, Tank-class is zero points." Hearing her less desirable standard, our Blast Guard sighed in disappointment.

"MMMMuu! Takeru you bad person!"

"Shut up and let's go already! There's nobody left here! Go to the front! RUSH B NO STOP!"

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Operation 21, 94 minutes in**

 **Mogami-class Heavy Cruiser, UN-Imperial 3rd Fleet Flagship, Mogami**

"Your opinions, 1st Lt. Silvio?"

"This is… unheard of, Professor. A single Squadron holding back an entire front of the Sadogashima Hive population." Standing by her side, the Euro man inspected an island under siege by the two main factions of Far East Defence. He witnessed it too, the complete madness of Shirogane's Company.

"—Whiskey Unit causalities at eighteen percent. Echo Unit casualties at four percent. Both units have delayed the supply drop timer."

"They better, is there even anything for them to shoot at?"

"Err, the teams are cleaning after the Berkut Unit and A-01 respectively, ma'am!"

"Aha-ahahahaha!" Yuuko laughed uncontrollably when her rhetorical question was answered.

"XO Kouzuki, is it about time?" The 3rd Fleet's Admiral, Captain Kozawa inquired her.

"Yes, right now is good. Go ahead, Admiral."

"—Operation 21 will now move to Phase 4!" A roaring voice continued humanity's campaign against the BETA, forward was the only direction accepted.

"—HQ to all forces. The operation is moving to Phase 4. Repeat- the operation is moving to Phase 4."

"As a born Japanese man, nothing makes me happier than seeing the dominance our forces have over the Sadogashima Hive. However, as a man of the Imperial military, I cannot help but feel incompetent." Yuuko could understand him easily, the Eishis of her Task Force were pretty much the only ones in action.

"Ahaha… unneeded worry, Admiral. We have only started."

"Yes, in many ways, the elephant is still standing steadily in the room." The old gentleman shot a mixed look behind him. While physically his view was blocked by steel plating, all the ship crew knew A-02 was just casually floating in the rear.

"That's true, I shouldn't hold my big reveal forever. Please tell the ships to make way."

"I will see it done." Thus the Admiral walked off to the side.

"Piatif, tune me into 13th's radio." It was time to take their next step.

"—yes, ma'am." A few statics later, Yuuko could undoubtedly hear shouting from many speakers.

"—Arc lead, this's bullshit, nerf Tamase."

"—Eeeeh?! That's not fair, Ayamine-san! I'm only sniping them!"

"Let's switch guns."

"N-nooooo! I'm still sniping them! Shoot them with your own gun, Arc 7!"

"Why don't you push up and stop being a campy whore?"

"Eeeeeee, no thank you!"

What the Professor perceived could only be described as the bickering of children playing an intense game, which she was in fact somewhat fond of.

"—Sumika's Element is gaining lead too quickly, Takeru! We will not be able to pull ahead at this rate!"

"—first, this's a free-for-all. I'm not your teammate, Meiya. Second, if you think you can doooodge them laser beams, go ahead and join them up there."

"But that is not where my specialty lies! I require close range combat! You are pulling my leg, Takeru! Move up!"

"Oh, I see how it is! You wanna compare kenjutsu skills, bitch!? Let's fucking go!"

"Ha-! That is much more suiting! I shall not lose in the art of sword-play!"

1st Lt. Silvio and Isumi were definitely right on this one, Shirogane's team was insane. But also insanely good at what they do, putting Yuuko in an even more perplexing position. Should she discipline her immature Eishis or to turn a blind eye and let them run wild? It was efficiency verses dignity, which one did she want to keep more?

"Piatif, give me Archangel 3."

"Yes, ma'am."

"—Yashiro, are you keeping tabs? What're the scores now?" Yuuko had a rough idea on how Shirogane administered his game.

"— -SumikA-SaN, FirsT PlacE WitH A ThousanD AnD ThreE PointS. I AM IN SeconD WitH NinE HundreD AnD TwentY-NinE PointS. MikI-SaN, FivE HundreD AnD FiftY-OnE PointS. Taker—"

"—okay, stoooooop! I got the picture, you guys are doing good. How about Eclipse Unit?" Listening to Yashiro under Prafka influence ended up bothering the Vice-Commander beyond her limit.

"…SiX ThousanD AnD NinetY-TwO PointS." Yuuko sighed in resign.

"Then they're doing good as well. Great, thanks for your update, Yashiro."

"You'rE WelcomE, ProfessoR KouzukI." Yuuko shut off her comms with the Russian esper.

"Piatif, Archangel 2 this time."

"Yes, ma'am." So much organizing to be done.

"—Kagami, how're things?"

"—KaHAhAAAhAHaa! KoUzuKi-sENseI! WE'rE prOgrESsinG SmoOtHly, mA'am!" Interestingly, Kagami displayed trait of respect and proper speech usage, a bit rare for someone as deep into Prafka as she was.

"Go ahead and move up A-02, might as well get you in there."

"RoGER!"

"And don't forget, Prafka and particle cannon don't mix well together. Also, engine off until the real work starts."

 **Suzumiya Akane**

 **Operation 21, 135 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima, Ryoutsu Bay**

"—so, err… is this the beachhead, Akane-chan?"

"—as a matter of fact, 2nd Lt. Tsukiji. This's what we call a beachhead; an empty one, but a beachhead nonetheless." That was not Akane answering her friend, instead 1st Lt. Munakata took over her job.

"Is that true, Akane-chan?"

"—eh? …Er, yeah." Suzumiya junior spat out her words a second late.

"What was that? You don't trust your senpai, Tsukiji?"

"—all units, get back to work. Eyes front, BETA signal detected over that hill. Vanguards, engage targets." There was little anybody could do to oppose Capt. Isumi's order.

Strangely, the one whose job it was to face their enemies head-on missed her opportunity to respond. Takahara, the other Vanguard of the Valkyries stood disordered, unsure if 1st Lt. Hayase's delay held any implication.

"Valkyries 2, you copy? Engage detected hostiles ahead!"

"—huh- ah, ahh. Sorry, Captain! You following, Takahara?" The First Lieutenant did come back around to lead her Element.

1st Lt. Hayase boosted forward at the drop of a hat, together with Takahara as their Element jumped over the hill and soon disappeared from sight.

"—Valkyries 2 reporting, false contact. Just a bunch of disabled Destroyers left by Shirogane's people. Mostly legs shot out, but still very much alive."

"—Valkyries 1 copy, the hell's Archangels doing? Don't they know Destroyers regen their body parts?!"

"Gonna finish them off before that happens. And look at this, 57mm, their sharpshooter's work." Some images of the wounded BETA were filed to 1st Lt. Hayase's teammates.

"Is that it? Anything else you see?"

"We clear, Captain. Good as ever."

"Excellent, we can roll in the XG then. —Command, please give the go-ahead."

It took a while; from afar, the XG-70 didn't even appear to be approaching at all. Still, the same silhouette of a behemoth fortress did move forward. Like the fleet of warships, even ocean itself spilt apart for the grand arrival of UN's iron giant. It advanced forward at the perfect increment of distance every passing second, slowly but surely.

And it was majestic, in the truest sense.

—

"—I can't believe it… did we always have something like this…?" Still a bit stuck in awe, Akane commented.

"—I'd really like to see it shoot some aliens though, hovering at a steady pace isn't exactly intimidating." Asakura was more judgemental about their super weapon.

"—it'll go to work eventually, we're protecting it until it does."

"Yes, because our environment is very dangerous right now. BETA are eating us every second. I'm so scared, protect me, Haruko. With your body." If the others didn't sense it, there was a high dose of sarcasm in Takahara's voice.

"Aha-ha-ha, please no. Go to 2nd Lt. Kazama for that." Haruko was having none of that gibberish.

"—could it be you're implying something, 2nd Lt. Kashiwagi? Perhaps something about my sexuality?" Akane confirmed it again; joking around on the public channel wasn't a good idea.

"—enough! It's because you people keep doing things like this that others call you 'KSR'!" Interjecting in their random debate, 1st Lt. Hayase dropped an unknown acronym.

"What's 'KSR', First Lieutenant?"

"It stands for 'Krazy Sycho Resbians'!" Hearing 1st Lt. Hayase's definition, only laughter ensued.

"Crazy starts with C, 1st Lt. Hayase."

"Psycho starts with P, 1st Lt. Hayase."

"—lesbian starts with L, and I'm seriously doubting your intelligence, Hayase." Zero mercy was shown as three members including 1st Lt. Munakata batted down 1st Lt. Hayase's poise.

"Yooooou fucking BITCHESSS—!"

"Take that burn and shut up, Hayase. We're focusing on defending the Susanoo for now."

"Defend it from what, terrible weather? We don't have a big enough umbrella for that." A couple of pity hoots for Munakata.

"Aggraa, let me call it in real quick. —Valkyries Mum, Ryoutsu Bay sector is secured. Requesting location information on A-01 13th." There was only so much Capt. Isumi could do to progress their mission.

"—the Archangel Squadron has secured the destination point for A-02, currently awaiting orders."

"Really!? Either the diversions are very successful or the BETA have no idea what they're doing."

"No change to your mission order, continue escorting A-02 until destination point." So much for seeing action, thought Akane.

—

"Ahhhhhhaaaaa…" Akane yawned lazily, she flexed her arms within the small confine that was her cockpit. Under normal circumstances she could never afford to be this lax, but their current position was somehow outside regularity.

Her eyes saw a field of land, that land which was coated entirely by corpses; that was the point, the BETA were all killed before Valkyries' arrival, their one job was taken care of by their very lovely comrades. The Archangels cleaned up first, not for the first time too.

"—you know, I'll be wondering for a while now… what's that painting on Susanoo's body?" An uncalled mention was brought up by Haruko, although Akane had taken notice of that strange drawing beforehand as well.

She tuned her optics up again, taking another good look of the questionable art. Simply put, it was a huge frog riding a unicycle, with the unicycle being Susanoo's lower body joints. It was a giant image, way too big to be of any practical use.

"—you guys also looking at the frog? Man, this thing… just… why?" 1st Lt. Munakata joined in.

"It's pretty cool though, riding a unicycle and all." Haruko approved.

"Valkyries 3 to 1. Captain, you got an idea as to what this is?"

"—I don't know and don't really care, you got a word, Hayase?" Their conversation just kept being redirected.

Until it reached 1st Lt. Hayase, that is.

"Hey, Valkyries 2! Hayase! You still alive in there!?" Capt. Isumi raised her voice when their Storm Vanguard applied silence as a response.

"—ah! Huh? Oh shit- yeah, yeah! Valkyries 2 reporting in! All status normal, zero hostiles detected!" Only awkwardness awaited 1st Lt. Hayase as she finally came to her senses.

"You alright, Hayase? Blanking out twice already." Obviously, Capt. Isumi would be concerned.

"Yeah-no, I'm great. Just thinking about stuff."

"…Hayase, what's your opinion on XG-70's body art?" 1st Lt. Munakata didn't push her for an answer to her absence.

"That? I remember what it's called… right, it's dat boi." Akane wasn't the only one who blinked in a baffled manner, nobody understood 1st Lt. Hayase's babble.

"It's… what boy?"

"No, dat boi. It's just called 'dat boi'." More mayhem ensued.

"…Whaaaat?"

"Seriously? None of you people know it? 'Here come dat boi o shit waddup!' It's a classic!"

"Uh-huh, shit's up indeed. As in what the hell are you talking about?" Akane shared 1st Lt. Munakata's viewpoint.

"Honestly? You girls aren't playing me, right? None of you know dat boi?" All of Valkyries traded glances, which led them to a single conclusion.

"Sorry Hayase, but you might be crazy. I'm calling for therapy session for you, non-discussable."

"Are you actually kidding me!? For that!?" The one person who got the short end of the stick wasn't there for the picking of it.

"That isn't all, you just haven't been actual normal since yesterday. Brooding around on Christmas Eve when everyone else was having fun? That ain't right. Also, must I remind you how you quit drinking years ago?"

"That was…! Agrrra, whatever!" 1st Lt. Hayase quickly killed her comms to evade further interaction.

"Captain, isn't calling therapy for her a bit extreme? Hayase might just be under the weather." 1st Lt. Munakata felt the punishment was too severe for the girl.

"No… it's… it just doesn't feel right, all of this. Her therapy… I wish to see her there." The tone Capt. Isumi used was unlike any other.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 155 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima, A-02 destination**

"— ~It's raining men~! Hallelujah, it's raining men~!"

"—Takeru, would you please stop? You singing that is just so weird." Like always, Class rep had an issue with every fibre of my body.

"Shuddup! It shows I'm not racist or sexist! But I'll stop, because it does feel super weird." No matter how hard I try, my bra wouldn't be big enough to sail the Atlantic.

"Orbital divers! Second wave inbound! Brace for impact! Coffins are dropping!" I wasn't singing that song for no reason.

"~Let the sky fall~ when it crumbles~ we will~ stand talllll~~! Face it all~ together!" Neither was Sumika with those actually-pretty-good vocals.

The ground shook violently as re-entry shells tore through the earth, slamming away the BETA on contact and making path for the divers. Hadn't seen some ODST action in a while, reminded me of the time I did drops as well. It was… a thing, gonna leave it at that.

"Everyone done with resupply?" Looking around, we consumed four extra containers just for our extensive models of TSFs. This was probably costing sensei an ass-load of money to stock, good thing her butt was— no, vulgar joke for another time.

"—Archangel 2, restock complete!"

"—Archangel 3, restock complete." Twin Berkuts backed away from their Soviet made supply crates, their pilots came out of Prafka mode minutes before. I was just glad none of that absurd speech was around.

"—Archangel 5, restock complete." Being the elitist she was, Meiya drew new guns and swords from the IRG chest sent exclusively for her.

"Archangel 4, restock complete."

"—Archangel 7, restock complete." Then there were Class rep and Ayamine, their Test Type-01s were fed by standard Imperial supply drops, cost efficiency was one of the upsides of a Shiranui Second.

"—Archangel 6, restock is complete!"

"—Archangel 8! Restock complete!"

"Goddamn it, Mikoto! It was perfect until you ruined it with your correct grammar!" How could this girl be so blind?

"Huh! I'm still upset about my rockets!" She frowned as her Raptor reloaded its shoulder-mounted containers.

As for Mikoto and Tama, I didn't even know where we got American supply crates. It did its job though, they got their sniper rounds and missiles, so I stopped asking.

"Atttttttenttttion! All units, looking at the clock, we'll have free interval for about ninety minutes. Anybody wanna go anywhere?" We had abundant of time until the BETA begin their counteroffensive, of which will be blasted away by the fortress punctually.

"If that is the case, I would appreciate permission to visit the Whiskey front." Meiya applied first.

"Sure, but I'm not going with you. Kasumi, switch formation with me, you tag along." I wasn't that bored.

"Understood." She never disagreed to anything anyway.

"I'll take Sakaki and clear out a few gates." Next, Ayamine demanded freedom.

"Ehh? What? Why me?"

"I need an Element partner… you can do it."

"I mean- she does need an Element partner." Class rep shot us some disengaging looks before giving in to peer pressure.

"Arrga, whatever. I'll keep you alive."

"Good girl… good girl."

"Miki will stay here with Yoroi-san! Just in case the BETA attacks!' My loli combo seemed to have already made up their mind.

"Alright, since Sumika can't go anywhere, our form is good like this. A Flight and two Elements, anything else?"

"Why can't Kagami go anywhere, Takeru?" Class rep curiously asked.

"Errr, because I said so. Now go! You're free! Fly like sparrows! Woohoo!"

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Operation 21, 167 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, cleared area**

"—estimated remaining time at sixty-two minutes. Caution, hostile movers detected. BETA herd size, large Battalion."

"—my gratitude, Kasumi. You have done well by my side, considering the little time we spent together."

"…Are you up to something, Meiya-san?"

"Haha, do not worry yourself. I am merely… encountering a particular acquaintance, this is no conspiracy, I assure you."

"Is it Tsukuyomi-san?"

"How did you— no, forget it. I should not be awed by your vast knowledge, Kasumi."

"Is it Tsukuyomi-san?"

"Persistent one, must you be?"

"Is it Tsukuyomi-san?"

"…In a way, yes. To stay forthright, I am unsure why I am complied to visit them. Perhaps you may be of assistance once more…"

 **Tsukuyomi Mana**

 **Operation 21, 172 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, front line**

"—additional incoming BETA! Battalion size around seven hundred Grapplers and Destroyers! No Laser-class spotted!" Kamiyo, one of Mana's trustworthy followers informed her of her findings.

"—Crest 2 copy. All units, formation Wing 3 with Squadron A on rearguard! Enclose the BETA vanguard and crus—"

"—nonsense, Tsukuyomi. Such disposition shall not do." As the adjutant to her new baron, Mana thought nothing of the order change and only went along.

"As you sure, my lord?"

"Of course, members of royalty must lead by example. I shall be of no exception. Now perform the honours, Tsukuyomi, this is your role as my aide-de-camp." Ikaruga Takatsugu spoke back, his soothing voice sounded ever so peaceful contrasted to the hell that was their field of battle.

"Yes, sir. —Crest 2 to all units in the 16th Honour Guard Battalion. Advance in double Arrowhead 1 formation. Break open a path and charge forward! Do let allow the Soviets to disgrace us any further!"

Ikaruga's Type-00 took its rightful spot as the leader of his Battalion, twin jet engines roared to its raw power output. He dashed ahead, faster and stronger than any other machines catching his tail. Stunning strikes and flawless accuracy slayed alien monsters by the heartbeat, it was truly a sight to behold in Mana's eyes.

"Tsukuyomi, do you wish to fall behind your comrades?" In her short-lived daze, Mana neglected to control her TSF properly.

"My apology, I do not, Ikaruga-sama."

"That is good, the Su-47s have secured twofold our amount of kills. This shall not be tolerated any longer." The Honour Guards had piled up an astounding number of bodies, yet it still fell short compared to the laser dodging Russians.

"…I cannot understand it, my lord. Even with XM3 installed, how can they own such a lead in confirmed kills alongside us?"

"Perhaps it is not a question of what we have, but a question of what they do not." Calmly as ever, Ikaruga replied after he snatched three Grapplers from under a Berkut's nose.

"…I'm afraid I do not understand."

"These TSFs, they seem to have two styles of action. At the beginning, they moved programmatically, almost as if they are entirely controlled by AIs. However, as of now, their movements are fanatic, jarring and even illogical. Similar to the deed of a madman, complete contrast to their pervious behaviour."

"Still… how does that tell us anything?"

"As obvious as it may be, these machines are not piloted by regular Eishis. They are too unified, It is alike a system of command; physical bodies are numerous yet the mind is only one." Ikaruga smiled at the glare a white Berkut was shooting him when he took another kill from them.

"I see… has the Soviet developed a program more capable of piloting than humans?" Then it started to click for Mana, schemes this size never smelled pleasant to her.

"I believe that fully depends on our definition of human… I do suspect for it to be related to—"

"—is that not an intriguing theory? How unpropitious that I was not invited to the progression of this intelligent discussion." Suddenly, a confident voice boomed in their channel, a line only belonging to the Royal Guards.

It was only after her first sentence did Mana notice her pulsing signal, spiralling like a hawk though the sky from their three O'clock. The colour of purple preserved for a true sovereign cut across the land, wreaking havoc against the BETA on her approach.

"—this must be the most delightful surprise yet. For you of all people to join us on this battlefield! …Mitsurugi!" Even Ikaruga displayed a cheerful yet watchful attitude.

"Ikaruga! How can there be victory without my presence? Is my attendance truly unforeseen?" There was a strange hint of egotism in Meiya's voice, more plainly displayed when she skewered a BETA next to Ikaruga. The saber missing his Takemikazuchi by measly centimetres.

Directly to her back, a distinct Berkut hovered, this one was unlike the rest. While the camo colour was the same as its teammates, the air it offered was much more alive than the rest.

"I was informed of your unit's involvement in this operation, Mitsurugi-dono. However, I did not expect for you to personally make an appearance."

"I spared some free time to meet you, Ikaruga-dono." Now their boastful greeting was over, both sides went back to speaking respectfully.

Meiya swung her sword again, slaying couple of Destroyers and Grapplers in the blink of an eye. Mana felt true amazement, she didn't known her master gotten this skilled at the art of piloting already.

"I am honoured, then may I have this dance?" Nonetheless, Ikaruga did not fall short, he too fired off rapid bursts of 120mm and blasted away more foes.

"Of course you may, however it is to my understanding you have sustained injury during the attack… are you unhurt?" For the quickest moment, their conversation had a solemn air attached to it.

"…My loyal servant, Tsukuyomi Maya protected me from the blunt blast. She is currently recovering in Tokyo." Of course, Mana was aware of her cousin's wound. So it was refreshing to her when Ikaruga spoke of the matter with a voice of condolence.

"…I see. Tsukuyomi, you must also be hearing this; with Her Highness' blood flowing through my veins, we owe your name our gratitude." Meiya too, exhibited her sympathy.

"—Meiya-sama, this honour is one too great for me to bear, yet I shall not fail in achieving your expectation."

"That is good. Now let us return to the stage once more! Our masquerade shall be the highlight of my arrival." This marked the end of remorse, as there was more pressing matter to take care of.

Mana could see it, a fiery rivalry was scorching between the two 00s. This was a time when blue refused clearly to bow down to purple, both clans had pride too great to yield.

"—more incoming! Another BETA Battalion coming in from southwest! Multiple Fort-class spotted!" Someone amongst the Royal Guards reported.

"I am certain our XM3 has made its way to your inventory, Ikaruga-dono."

"Indeed it has, quite a potent device, I must admit."

"It brings me pleasure to know your gratification."

"Same for me, this allows us to duel on equal footings." They both smiled, or maybe it was closer to a grin.

"That, we must."

"Strong enemies stand before us, Mitsurugi-dono." Ikaruga spoke again after a moment of silence.

"So they do, yet I shall traverse unhindered. Seeing as I have gained an upper hand already." Meiya might just be provoking Ikaruga on the side.

"Have you now? Your confidence is reassuring, Mitsurugi."

"Today, may very well be our day. To the front! Do not let those vile creatures shame our name!"

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Non-** **chronological, Operation 21, 168 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, front line**

"—I understand your problem, Meiya-san. I'm contrasting a workable plan for you to sound confident and cool, please standby."

"—Kasumi… must you word it like that?" The girl wasn't wrong essentially, although Meiya did wish she chose to phrase it so she didn't sound like an attention-whore… whatever that means when Takeru said it.

"I need the access code to the IRG channel."

"Understood, forwarding decoder."

"Transmission received, tapping into targeted channel. Analyzing dialogue substance." Together with Kasumi, Meiya listened in on the Royal Guards' radio.

"—I'm afraid I do not understand." Tsukuyomi's alarmed opinion came through first, her partner in discussion was someone Meiya knew she recognized.

"—these TSFs, they seem to have two styles of action. At the beginning, they moved programmatically, almost as if they are entirely controlled by AIs. However, as of now, their movements are fanatic, jarring and even illogical. Similar to the deed of a madman, complete contrast to their pervious behaviour." Ikaruga of the 16th Battalion, a person who Meiya couldn't decipher.

"Analysis complete, calculating recommended action."

"I appreciate your effort, Kasumi… however, is this not too… exaggerated?" A jumbled mien surfaced above Meiya's feature, she still had no idea what the Russian girl had in mind.

"—still… how does that tell us anything?" As for Tsukuyomi, their talk continued.

"Recommended action, interrupt target dialogue. On cue, repeat after me. 'Is that not an intriguing theory. How unpropitious that I was not invited to the progression of this intelligent discussion.' Please be noted to speak with more poise and confidence."

"Eh? Is that not too… flamboyant if I were to express in such a manner?"

"This is needed procedure, please cooperate for maximum effect, Meiya-san." There wasn't much room for a counterargument when Meiya was the one who brought it up.

"—as obvious as it may be, these machines are not piloted by regular Eishis. They are too unified, It is alike a system of command; physical bodies are numerous yet the mind is only one." The other chat still kept on going.

"Very well, I shall do as you say, Kasumi."

"Intercept in four… three… two… one."

"—I see… has the Soviet developed a program more capable of piloting than humans?"

"—I believe that fully depends on our definition of human… I do suspect for it to be related to—" And this was when Meiya made her appearance.

—

In more ways than one, this action was embarrassing Meiya to no end. Sharing the spirit of competition she learned from Takeru with Ikaruga as they counted their kills was not an original plan of Meiya's.

Being her sister's shadow, Meiya had always been taught to act modest and rational in front of others. But now the Shogun herself might be acting specious and completely based on her whim if Meiya were to consider everything that took place this month, she was placed in this awkward situation of playing up her role.

Nevertheless, she did sound pretty cool declaring her onward push. Takeru surely would have enjoyed listening to her exuberant speech, being the most exuberant man Meiya knew.

Thus she charged forward, faster than any of her comrades. Fighting for her empire on the surface, Meiya understood how that man was what she desired to protect.

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 210 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima, A-02 destination**

"—um, so Meiya was actively looking for cuckold Macdoofus? That's okay, I don't really care."

"—are you sure, Takeru-san? I have a clean shot." Kasumi got my back covered like a NEET shut-in's room, it was impenetrable.

"Yes— I mean, no, Kasumi. Don't kill the guy, he has his uses."

"I'm confident I can make it look like an accident." This was persistence.

"It's fine, leave it. You're always available for dining, right?"

"Please enjoy my body at any time, Takeru-san. My legs are always open for you." Believe it or not, getting a boner in this suit was very uncomfortable.

"Huggnnnn!" So worth it though.

I stood my YF-23 high above a mesa, overlooking a racked battlefield done by explosive payload. It was empty save for the piles of BETA bodies littering the land, it was all red, everything my eyes could perceive. Far away from here, the reverberating noises of never-ending gunfire sounded like a calm melody, only if I had some tea to pass the time until Sumika reached us.

"—HQ to Archangel 1, Professor Kouzuki will be connected shortly." I heard an Operator's voice notifying me of Yuuko-sensei.

"—Arc 1 copy, I'm listening."

"Yo, Shirogane. Need an update from you, anything you think's gonna happen soon?"

"Not unless you give me one first, sensei. How're the divers doing?" They were what I used to determine our progress.

"They're moving… fairly behind. Furthest any unit's gotten is the 9h stratum, their hostile elimination ratio is high at least."

"Umm, so it has come to this. There's no point, if they can't make it to the 15th stratum in twenty, have them pull out. Same thing if they detect any sudden movements below, I told you how BETA dig, right?" Sensei nodded to my prompt.

"I hear you, Shirogane. Keep their comms functional and data-link stable, I remember. A-02 will begin its run in twenty minutes, the Valkyries are still escorting it through the beach."

"Damn, Sumika's fat ass is slow. It was ready by the coast too, why is it taking so long?"

"We can't just bust through the lines with the Moorcock-Lechte Engine on at all times, she has to hide from the BETA until we reach the endpoint." Lazy Sumika was too slothful to work fulltime.

"Once she reaches us it's another five minutes to the firing position, why doesn't she go straight there?" I knew the answer clear as day, so having sensei say it back to me wasn't that boost to morale I needed.

"Terrain's no good, the ravine provides good cover. Don't waste my time with your pointl— hold on- Suzumiya… from the 6th Orbital Divers? …Yeah, okay, play over my channel. —you listen as well, Shirogane. It's an emergency call from the chickens, I don't want to repeat someone else's words."

"Roger that, I'm online."

"—CP, CP! This's Aquila 1! BETA reinforcements are digging upwards from all branches under the 12th stratum! They're all heading for the surface! Estimated number at forty thousand! Hall K-4 to P-12 are lost! We're retreating with Sauber, Lazard and Ghost!"

In sync with that man's declaration, the earth under my feet was shaking viciously like the centre of an earthquake. My high-tech underground radar map thingy popped up without delay, telling me the mechanical factors of this wobble which I never asked for.

"Your thoughts, Shirogane?"

"I like how they didn't even ask for permission, just bailed out right away." I commented my first notion.

"Well, they were told to fall back if a thing like this happened, your idea. Anything to add?"

"Nope, the plan was to use our Susanoo since the very beginning, who honestly thought the divers would succeed anyway?" They had no chance, also this was my right to glory.

"Guess that's that. We'll hit them with artillery the second they show their ugly mugs, should this one be loaded with metal cloud?"

"Yeees, aim for the coordinates I'm sending you. Their Lasers are back near the monument, regular shells should be aiming for the gates, once that's done get Eclipse unit to bat them dead." How refreshing, for sensei to be the one who's taking orders from me.

"Alright, I'll see to it. You be careful, Shirogane." My comms disconnected from her immediately after, Yuuko-sensei just hated letting people say their goodbyes.

"—Arc lead to Element B, Class rep, how're things going?" My memory served perfectly and I recalled how her and Ayamine were hanging out around some hive gates, same gates that were about to be lit up.

"—Arc 4 reporting, we're seeing friendlies exiting from the nearest gates. Please advise."

"—advise my ass… let's help them, Sakaki." Ayamine was in the mood to take my shoes, it seemed.

"She said it, go down on her ass, Arc 4."

"Shut up, just- shut up, Takeru. Element B moving to engage hostiles, how would the chain of command work in this situation?" That was a legit problem we had to go over.

"You work independently, don't take their orders if they ain't using 'please'."

"Err… Arc 4 roger, get up and move, Ayamine!"

"Oooo, Element B out." What a strange yet humorous cooperative relationship those two got.

Watching the fruit of their growth, their teamwork; it was unstable, reliable, and still somehow workable. Ayamine and Class rep, those two had fought many times for the smallest reason, often leading to entertaining outcomes. But now they were both here, a presentation of the perfect collaboration.

"—Arc 2, what's A-02's ETA?" Done with those girls, Sumika and her giant Metal Gear was next on my list of concerns.

"—errm, about half an hour! I'll be there soon!" Her bright smile hadn't changed in the slightest since I last saw her; in fact, her smile alone never changes.

Like the reflection of a mirror, Sumika appeared so clean, so flawless on first glance. However, that was a mere disguise for a mind long past its expiration date. In a way, the Sumika I remembered fondly was long gone, replaced by a counterfeit. Nevertheless, I denied the truth; in my mind, Sumika was still living with me, healthy as could be.

"You wanna go for a dance then? They'll be here soon, a lot of them." This was our playground now, unlike that old park in our town. This new form of entertainment was more…lively.

"Yeah… yeah, let's do that, Takeru-chan. Let me be myself again, let me kill them all…" She stared through me, a melancholic light glimmering in those brilliant orbs.

"—A-Arc 8 reporting! Spotted Battalion size BETA forces incoming direct front! They crawled out from the nearest gate!" And what a perfect timing Tama utilized on detecting some prey.

"—great find, Tamase. How you guys wanna hit'em?" Both Rear Guards were slow on their reply.

"—shouldn't we just attack them normally?" Mikoto finally suggested.

"I mean- guess so. Alright, Sumika and I can take vanguard, Tama'll provide sniper support and Mikoto can cover our backs. Let's take it to them."

"Yes, siiiiiir!" There were all happy reactions to my order.

I adjusted my stance from a lazy lean to a proper upright sit in my cockpit, one of my AWMS was stocked back on the Mount Pylon as my free right hand reached back for a sword. One rifle and one blade for a balanced slaying power, just like how I preferred normally.

"Sumika, will this be a duo?"

"Sorry Takeru-chan, but I perform better solo!" My personal experience was evident to her statement.

The empty Berkut controlled by the 00 unit studied her arsenals, two sets of Soviet A-97 Assault Cannons were equipped in both her hands and mounts respectively. Similar to any other cannons, these served the Russians just fine, so will they for Sumika.

But here were what most people, including me didn't imagine. Sumika took a different posture, and with great motorized strength she threw her two rifles straight ahead, making them disappear amidst the battlefield.

"…Just… why?" I couldn't be much more confused.

"Emergency resupply! In case I need more guns!"

"Okay." In a way, preparing her scavenge loot beforehand wasn't that far of a stretch.

"Welllp, Arc 1 to Flight A, move in and kill all targets. Weapons free." Some form of order must be given.

Our four machines responded in turn, deafening roars of our engines broke the war ground's peace in an instant. Against our second wave of aliens today, there should be more left to kill after this.

"Make it RAIN! Make it rain BLOOD!" In front of everything else, Sumika placed her dibs.

 **Author's note**

Haven't updated in a while, was busy working so I can buy a new PC, nothing special going on. Here's the beginning of Sadogashima, some shit's probably going down soon, that's nice.

When a language other than English is used there'll be a translation depending on whether the character speaks that language or not, (except for the times I didn't do that, this's starting now.) but that doesn't mean I speak those languages, call me out if you see a mistake. Actually, call me out for any mistakes you see, please?

Also, just to remind everyone the entire story is told from a subjective PoV, everything is only true to the character whose name is tagged in bold. Been a fanfic, people don't pay good attention so I made some hints more clearer, not blaming anyone, just how things are, easier to read isn't a bad thing, is it?

Anyway, do me a favour and review and stuff or whatever, literally tell me anything you want, I'll most likely reply if I got something to say back.

BETA done by chad001, because I can only think of terrible jokes right now, have an equally terrible icebreaker

The Titanic.


	41. Missing 21 Grams II

**M****** M*******

 **Operation 21, 221 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, front line**

"—keep up the pressure! Don't let any of those monsters get close! Squadron A, stop their advance! Squadron B, circle around the left side of those Destroyers! Go! GO! GO!"

"—Cracker 1 to HQ! Requesting artillery support at point Romeo six-two niner ASAP! They're gonna overrun us at this rate!"

He felt wetness in his glove covered palms, exhaustion was wearing out his eyes, and concentrating became more difficult as his muzzles flashed with every shot. He already fired so, so many shells. Killed so, so many beasts, still it wasn't enough.

"—HQ to Cracker 1, all artillery fire are occupied at this moment. Wait three hundred seconds."

"Goddamn it! Another three hundred seconds and we're gonna be dead! —Juncture 1 to Cracker 1! Hold our left flank!"

Chatters over his radio faded to nothingness by the time they reached his ears. A filter was stationed in his mind, it served to block out any noises unrelated to his mission.

And there was only one goal he had to complete, kill the BETA.

All around him, comrades were dying by every passing second. He thought they started off strong, enough soldiers to counter the aliens. But that wasn't the case. It was fourteen to thousands, two Squadrons from his Battalion and one of Cracker Regiment's Platoons. As for the rest of Juncture's people, there wasn't anything left.

"Captain! CAPTAIN! There's one more BETA Company RIGHT BEHIND US! SHIT- they're surrounding us!"

"Agrra, fuck! We have to break out NOW! Everyone, FALL BACK!"

"—Cracker 3! You're Storm Vanguard! Cut open a freaking path!"

"—bu-b-but! My Sword's—! FIRST LIEUTENANT! YOUR RIGHT!"

"Wha- the—! UGGRA—!"

Who had died? Was it her? He didn't know; he didn't even see how the event had unfolded. The BETA charged fast, and it killed faster. There was no hope, a Type-77 trampled to smithereens. There existed no opportunity to escape, the Destroyer-class didn't permit it.

"Ahh-AAHHHH! F-F-FI-FIRST LIEUTENANT!" Someone screamed vividly, a sound he couldn't shut out. Everyone was in danger at that time, but she was in so much deeper than the rest.

When he did turn around to see, the entire world slowed down in time for him alone. A sense of urgency overwhelmed him similar to how the BETA overwhelms their enemies, and for here, it was more fitting than most. He was too far from Akira's position, too late to rush to her rescue.

"Aaaa—" She swallowed her shriek, total fear overtaking her body.

The claw of a Grappler had never been closer to her Gekishin, any second now death would take her to the afterlife. There was nothing, he could do nothing to help. He wasn't even given the time to cry her name; everything they built together, all gone. So delicate was the human life, so easily would everything be lost.

Thus, somebody else had to take his place, for this once. Akira couldn't die here, not here, not in front of him.

A gaudy flash of purple flied across his sight immediately followed by another blue drift. They held no form to their momentum, for their speed was beyond what his eyes were capable of detecting. Two crafts scuttled pass, annihilating all those monsters which were posing as a threat but a moment ago.

"AAHHHAA! AAhh! Aaaaah! Haaaaa! Mi-Mi-Masaki…?! MASKIIII!" Akira lived, and not a minute later her Type-77 was shielding itself in his shadow.

Maejima Masaki chose to keep his quiet, there were no words he felt appropriate for their situation. He could have easily cried Akira's name back, but that was only shake his foundation as her pillar of protection. A sentence of reassurance most likely would be appreciated, if the man was mentally prepared to speak it, that is.

"—the Imperial Royal Guard TSF that saved you… that unit's colour… no way…" For now, he could only state the facts laid out before him. Just considering the possibility of losing her would shatter his heart to pieces.

"—Crest 2 of the IRG 16th Battalion to friendly IJA Whiskey Unit Battalion leader, respond." A tolerant voice announced itself as the adjutant to the commander of the Honour Guard's 16th Battalion, one of Japan's finest units, peerless in their work and proficiency.

However, it wasn't the first wave of Type-00s that stopped to greet them, instead another Takemikazuchi shaded in red stood itself majestically before him. Its stance seemed to be taking the credit for Akira's rescue. Masaki surveyed his surroundings, but the two purple and blue fighters had long since departed.

"—yes, 31st Tactical Armoured Battalion, Juncture. Along with 133rd Tactical Armoured Regiment Platoon, Cracker." Masaki's Captain reported their unit's origin and number.

A long silence later, the opposing TSF spoke back. The same female voice reappeared.

"On behave of Majo— excuse me, Lieutenant Colonel Ikaruga Takatsugu-sama; I ask of your unit to fall back and act as our support. Leave this front line to us, there is no need to worry." Even Masaki recognized that name, A Regent House of the Shogunate, someone from royalty contributed to their battlefield.

"Understood, ma'am. But there's at least a couple of BETA Battalions over there! Are you sure your team can take'em?!" The Royal Guards planned to face foes Masaki's team was too weak to defeat. With lesser numbers, their odds didn't appear any stronger.

"Only thousands…? That might only work as appetizers for those few… mind not, Juncture 1, we are capable." Whatever the IRG Eishi meant by appetizer, he didn't want to stick around to find out.

"Roger! Juncture and Cracker unit, backing away. —let's get asses moving, y'all! We're protecting the flanks now! Don't let up just because of that!" His Captain shouted after accepting the team's new order.

"Akira, it's time to go. Are you okay?"

"…Yeah, yeah they saved me. I-I was so scared, Masaki-chan!" On his monitor, Masaki spotted Akira's tear-filled face still leaking fluid from her sockets.

"It's alright, it's alright. We're going to the back now, you'll be safe. I promise to protect you, don't worry." For now, he could only offer words of confidence.

"Thank you, Masaki-chan… but that purple Takemikazuchi… it isn't possible, is it?" Akira stumbled in her words,

"I ain't got a clue either, it doesn't matter right now, just don't think about it." Masaki too, he wasn't sure what he saw.

 **Mitsurugi Meiya**

 **Operation 21, 224 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, front line**

"—Lieutenant Colonel, yes? Congratulations on your recent promotion, Ikaruga-dono." Meiya smiled in her camera as a cheerful encouragement for Ikaruga, he nodded back at her somewhat, not showing too much rejoice.

"—my promotion… was nothing but a ceremonial persuasion for me to join this battle. After that attack, the foundation of the Royal Houses has been shaken." His simple reply washed away Meiya's aspiration.

"Let us… not discuss such matters here. The warfare which lay before us is more protruding than what transpired behind."

"Indeed, speaking of which. Your skill with a halberd is an enchantment of beauty, Mitsurugi-dono."

What Ikaruga brought up next caught Meiya slightly unprepared, she yelped quietly to his proclamation as countless bodies of BETA stacked up to their sides.

"Eh? Such words of esteem is unlike you, Ikaruga-dono."

"Nonsense, I am merely making my appraisal known to all. Your ability in combat is what is truly appealing." Surprising her using admiration, Meiya was uncertain if that man concocted his belief or simply found her amazing.

"Ah… I am honoured, Ikaruga-dono. Your commendation please me."

"That is good, now let us focus on the immediate goal ahead." He suggested an end to their conversation which Meiya had no reason to disagree with.

Waves upon waves of BETA charged on, careless to their personal well-being as if acting in accordance to a hive mind. To meet the unstoppable surge head on, Meiya and Ikaruga restocked at the nearest supply drop in preparation for a new onslaught. Chasing closely behind them were Tsukuyomi and Kasumi, both recognized their desire for a duel and were wise to permit them independence.

With her rifles loaded and swords swapped, Meiya checked through her settings and smiled when she noticed no anomalies. Although, whenever she switched her view from one configuration on her screen to another, her eyes always lingered on the portrait of Ikaruga for a second too long.

Eventually the other man of Regent House detected her gaze, he shot back a charming smile. Meiya's response staggered too much to even surface, leaving her dumbfounded expression available for Ikaruga to observe.

And he laughed after seeing her face.

"Wha—! Y-you!" Meiya failed to mount a verbal comeback.

"…Hahaha… an interesting one you are, Mitsurugi. I find myself growing fond of you despite our few occasions at association." Immediately after his proposal, Meiya shut off her profile camera to conceal any further embarrassment from being recorded.

"C-cease your snicker at once, I-Ikaruga! I shall not sit here and accept such mockery!"

"Heh… hehe, your attitude has certainly taken a significant change compared to when you first spoken. Perhaps you have become rather less arrogant without the assistance from your speech adviser?" Meiya gulped her primitive reaction to yelp again, Ikaruga even seen through that plot somehow.

"Yoooou—! I d-dislike you, Ikaruga!" He only laughed more.

"Ahahaha…! Alas, those creatures in our way are becoming too much of an obstruction to our talk. Let us slay the animals first, Mitsurugi-dono." Suddenly sincere, Ikaruga recognized that the real threat inched too close for comfort.

"A-ah, yes. Allow me." The battlefield was business as usual for Meiya, but her mood just took a big tumble.

For reasons unclear to the samurai girl, a man other than Takeru caused her to blush uncontrollably red. This might be an incident to call for alarm, however Meiya was somewhat reluctant to correct her mindset.

Of course, in no way was the man known as Ikaruga Takatsugu deserving of her detestation. He was quite a captivating man, there was no denying the uncanny charm he emanated from merely existing. Meiya saw that as an excellent quality for any person to boast, similar yet different to Takeru's wide and loveable narcissism.

Frankly, Ikaruga and Takeru displayed many comparable characteristics in Meiya's eyes. But it was tough for the girl to find proper words fitting as a description to her feelings, they were very alike in many fashions. Takeru for the longest time was a mystery to her, to this day she was not privy to his true origin.

As for Ikaruga, he was a man she scarcely met save for the few times they encountered in the royal palace. According to her memory, or the few of them there was; Ikaruga for the longest time acted as he pleased within limits.

For a while, neither royalty said anything worth discussing. Until a slow, catchy tune was starting to call for Meiya's attention. And she could barely, just barely hear a singing voice.

"…~ue o muite~ arukou~…

~namida ga ~kobore~ …nai you~ ni~

~omoidasu ~haru~ no hi~

hitoribotchi…~ no yoru…~"

All her life, Meiya never suffered so much pain from holding back her laughter. There was Ikaruga, slaying BETA in his blue Takemikazuchi while humming the lyrics to 'Ue wo Muite Arukō'. A song popularly known as 'Sukiyaki' in the west, performed by Kyu Sakamoto.

For Ikaruga, out of everyone else on earth to be quietly singing this song was simply just too hilarious. While the man usually carried a mysterious manner wherever he went, Meiya knew a few times when she had to personally step in to prevent him from becoming too much of a nuisance…

 _How strange, this vivid image reoccurring to her wasn't about Takeru at all…_

—

"—Mitsurugi! Mitsurugi, eyes forward!" Somebody's shout of her name pulled Meiya out of her delusion, that person being none other than Ikaruga himself.

While her mind wandered the uncertain past, her hands slowed down enough to be of a deterrent on her piloting. A couple of Grappler-class were given the drop on her as she botched to react in time, death inched in closer until Meiya's life was within grasp.

Fortunately, Meiya was not combating against the aliens alone. Ikaruga rushed just in time for her rescue, cutting apart the four monsters that surrounded her in an instant. Again, Meiya crippled herself in her worthless daze, a repeat of what took place during the 12/5 incident.

"Ikaruga… my apology, I was caught by an awful distraction."

"All is well as long as you are unhurt, Mitsurugi." She hated the way he was made to look at her, trapping herself in a stupor was all too shameful.

"Please… I must terminate from our duel for now, I am distressed in ways I cannot describe." Meiya shook in her seat, the confidence she built up thanks to Kasumi had all but left her.

"Very well, I see that you are feeling indisposed. I pray for a swift recovery, Mitsurugi-dono." Ikaruga nodded reflectively, his care towards her was a nice turnabout from their previous attitude.

"—Archangel 3, please take vanguard. I require a break." Kasumi spared no second in replacing Meiya as the frontline now that her and Ikaruga fell back from their push.

"—understood, is there something you require?"

"Please leave me, Kasumi. I only necessitate time."

"…Okay." An Eishi of few words, Meiya always saw Kasumi as such.

"—Meiya-sama, are you hurt anywhere?" Next was Tsukuyomi, Meiya's loyal servant came to provide her helping hand.

"—Tsukuyomi… where do your opinions of Ikaruga-dono lies?"

"Ikaruga-sama? He is a charming man, no doubt. Of course, also a capable leader and valiant fighter when the circumstances demand it." Tsukuyomi too saw him in a favourable light, her arguments aligned just fine with Meiya's.

"Indeed, I hold high respect for him… yes, only respect…"

"Meiya-sama? Are you perhaps feeling unwell?"

"Perhaps… my senses seem to be trembling…"

Never forget one's pledge, that was her resolution.

 **Operation 21, 226 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit, support line**

Newfound fatigue weighted heavily on Meiya's eyelids, her single pony-tail would ever so often lash her shoulders as she stretched in her seat. The Type-00 was on auto-pilot for the moment, its objective was to reach the resupply line established by Whiskey Unit.

Infrequently, a Flight of Su-47s would pass by Meiya on their way back or forth between the resupply line and front. Vice-Commander Kouzuki was remarkable in using these Berkut Squadrons, as according to the latest intel, their presence had kept Whiskey Unit's casualty ratio below twenty.

Thinking about the Berkuts somehow led Meiya back to thoughts about Ikaruga and his conversation with Tsukuyomi discussing those machines' root. This fact was upsetting to her, how that man was retained at the forefront of Meiya's mind without permission.

Still, when Meiya recalled memories that surfaced, she received another glance into Takeru's history. That was one positive to be born from such irresolute experience, and she smiled warmly at the idea.

That peace, it was so warm. He was so kind, so loving.

"—uh, uhmm… Y-Your Highness!" Suddenly, a girlish loud whisper interrupted Meiya's musing.

When her focus was turned back, a Squadron of Gekishins were all saluting sincerely to the Shogun's sister. Her lack of response must had worried whoever was most anxious about her company, leading to a young girl calling for her attention over the public channel.

"—at ease, the many of you have no cause to salute me." Meiya's training temporarily took over her speaking role.

Meiya surveyed around, none of the Type-77s were actively panicking, but that said nothing for its pilots. The Gekishins settled down a bit, their Eishis no doubt were still paranoid how the Shogun herself charged into battle.

"Everyone, do not be startled. While steering this purple frame, I am not Her Highness herself. So please, I ask of you all, to keep my appearance here a secret, as to not worry my sister during her busiest hour."

Accompanying her words, Meiya revealed her face onto their data-link. Many mutters of awe were logically heard, however it soon returned to business as usual for the Imperial soldiers. They had more important things to do than gawking at Meiya's machine.

"Errm… umm… K-Koubuin-sama! May I just have one minute of your time?" No reaction from Meiya as she wasn't used to her new name.

"Err-err… Koubuin-SAMA! Please May I just say one thing!?" Tilting her head up, only then Meiya realized she was being addressed.

"Umm? Ah, yes, what is it?" She saw a young girl's face projected onto her retina, a head of orange was shaking widely as the person calling for Meiya started to freak out when she actually receive her heed.

"Em, Koubuin-sama! Thank you very much for saving my life!"

"Hoo, you must be the Eishi of that one unit. I apologize, for not reaching our comrade in time." Meiya remembered, that one TSF she saved on her dash to the front with Ikaruga.

"No…! If you haven't been there, Koubuin-sama! I w-wouldn't have made it."

"Huhuhu, if that is the case. I must not solely take credit for your rescue. You must show equal gratitude to that other one who raced alongside me in battle, yes?" While thinking about that man was uncomfortable, it was still Meiya's duty to be fair to all.

"Yes! Of course!"

"Then I shall deliver your message to Ikaruga-dono. What is your name, brave soldier? I am pleased to have saved you."

"Er- I'm Isumi! Isumi Akira!" A slight surprise, Meiya leaned back and pondered for a quick second on her best reply to a friend's relative.

Nevertheless, what she did first was sending an invitation to her company for an encrypted channel using the Honour Guard's signal. Isumi looked bewildered at Meiya's offer, but she quickly accepted at the sight of Meiya's welcoming countenance.

"Is- is there something you'd like, Koubuin-sama…?" Still nervous, Isumi asked after their talk went private.

"…2nd Lt. Isumi, I presume?"

"Y-yes!"

"Do you happen to have a sister in the UN military?" Meiya's question caught Isumi junior off-guard, the girl reacted slowly, not understanding what she said.

"…Ah, yes! Michiru-nee is part of the United Nations… wait- how did Koubuin-sama know that!?" A quite giggle from Meiya for her reaction.

"Huhu, worry not. Were you told anything about her schedule on this paramount day?"

"Eh? Well, I asked about but- since she's with the UN and all, I don't think she's doing anything special today…"

"Huum, I see. So that is how that is." Meiya understood perfectly, Capt. Isumi didn't want to add any extra peril for her sister by making her anxious.

"Still… she must be quite fretted by your duty here today, this is humanity's largest counterattack in ages, after all." Similar to the way Meiya imagined her sister would vex, knowing the dread of possibly losing one's family member wasn't enjoyable.

"Em… I guess so, but it's easier for me… knowing that she isn't in danger." A wordless sigh from Meiya, the guilt of not revealing her knowledge was a thorn, but she must do what was best for the sister of her friend.

Nonetheless, that didn't mean there was no intention for Meiya to get to know the cute girl better.

"—Kasumi, what is our time?"

"—T-minus eighteen minutes until deadline." Meiya sought after an accurate report from Kasumi.

"That is abundant enough, thank you, Kasumi."

"You're welcome." She cut the line quickly when nothing else was required from her.

"What is your next mission task, Isumi?"

"We're guarding the resupply station right now, although the support line could need us elsewhere." Meiya glanced her surroundings, it was a well-fortified location they occupied.

"In that case, we have plentiful of time to communicate. Allow me to introduce myself formally; our name is Koubuin Meiya, closest kin to Her Highness the Grand shogun. I have not been active on the political field for… security reasons, however that is set to alter soon."

"Ahh… so that's why I never knew the Shogun has a twin!" Stating the obvious, Isumi seemed to finally be comfortable with her.

"Indeed, although I must ask you not to spread my existence too wild, for this is upcoming news not yet ready for our nation."

"Okay, okay!" Isumi nodded dynamically, the earlier fear she suffered appeared to have faded by.

"Also, if you do not refuse, I would like to address you by the name of Akira as of now. It would cause us less confusion down the line."

"Of course, ma'am!" A mild, but friendly smile from the samurai enticed Akira easily.

"Moving on, I am well acquainted with your sister. Capt. Isumi Michiru is by no fabrication a potent leader." Meiya praised Akira's older sister next, even though she wasn't too familiar with the Captain during this time, she believed her to be a kind and capable person at heart.

"…Does that mean you've served with the UN, Koubuin-sama?"

"Quite so, I am currently on loan to UN Army's specialized Armour unit. Perhaps you know the name of—" Carelessly, Meiya realized she was about to reveal classified information.

"Eh? Is there something…?" Akira displayed innocent alarm to Meiya's cut-off.

"…I have said too much, it is nothing to be skeptical about. Fear not, Akira. If this operation progresses smoothly, you shall hear my news from someone more familiar."

"I understand, can't really tell an Imperial Eishi everything, right? I'm already really honoured to have spoken with you, Koubuin-sama!"

"Huhu, it is my pleasure. I am fairly enjoying your company, Akira. Do you mind to tell me a little about yourself?" Taking this opportunity to relax, Meiya understood how much of a relieve she was to the girl besides her.

"Of course, ma'am! I… err… -hum? —ah, yes, sir!" Meiya tilted her head when her discussion partner sounded to be called on her end.

"Koubuin-sama, sorry but they want me to help with moving some crates."

"I see, allow me to offer some assistance." For Meiya, there was nothing else she could have hoped to do, seeing as how her mental condition wasn't exactly fit for combat.

"Eh?! But that's—!"

"No need for alarm, I have retreated back due to my inability to sustain on the frontline. I am not ashamed to rest, however being only a paperweight is personally insulting." She hoped her reassurance would lead Akira to realize both of them were on the same plain of existence, by no means did Meiya think she was superior.

"…Well, please help me move those crates, Koubuin-sama. They want the supply line moved up."

"Understood." So the two friendly girls got to work.

—

"—anyway, that's why I joined the Imperials. Michiru-nee and Yayoi-nee don't openly express it… but they aren't really close to each other. Michiru-nee joined the UN for that reason too, she didn't want Yayoi-nee to know everything about her through Ichigaya."

Ichigaya of Shinjuku, Tokyo, where the current headquarters of the Ministry of Defence was based in. Similar to how Langley was often associated with the CIA, both agencies were represented by their location.

Meiya reminded herself since she never addressed the Ministry by that common name.

"—a troubling family, that sounds to be."

"Me and Marika- our second youngest sister were fine with Yayoi-nee keeping tabs, but Michiru didn't like been spied on at all. I don't know if they're still fighting over him or something, but hopefully they'll stop once the news reaches them…" Meiya didn't comment on who that 'he' was, she waited for Akira to continue.

"And since Marika is back on the second defence line, I'm the only one in our family fighting here. So I thought I'll be here fighting for all my sisters' sake… but all I ended up doing is endangering my friends by being scared… and being such a bother for Masaki-chan…" That was a detail Meiya could cut in from.

"Masaki-chan'…? Could that be the man who protected you after our arrival?" Akira was unprepared to answer, she acted surprised when Meiya repeated the name.

"Ah-ahahh, he's… he's…!" For reason rapidly made clear, Akira flustered bright pink trying to think of a decent reply.

"Your lover?"

"-Yes! My love— AAGHHH! NO-NO-NO! He's not that—! UUUUUU-!" The embarrassed girl's reaction was priceless, this was the first glimpse Meiya got into Takeru's mind when he 'trolled' others. And to be fair, it was certainly fun.

"Ahahaha… have no shame, child! I can relate to your sentimentality. For love is a precious item, difficult to find in today's world. You should be overjoyed to know it, its sweet nectar shall sit well by you."

"…Thank you… Koubuin-sama…" Still finding it hard to face her, she dodged her eyes from the camera.

"Truly… to be sure of one's love life is a pleasure in of itself. Continue then." Meiya was eager to learn.

"So yeah… it's kinda weird how all of us are in love with the same guy but- with this, hopefully everyone can stop fighting now."

"I see how your situation is, this will take away your sisters' justification for discord. Congratulations, Isumi Akira. There is no indication of that the underdog cannot emerge victorious."

"Ah… thank you very much! As expected of Koubuin-sama… you already know what I mean." It wasn't too difficult to decode Akira's message through her story, the history Meiya was told helped her immensely.

"What did you say that man's name was again?"

"Masaki, Maejima Masaki."

"Huhu, for a man to be the centre of four ladies' attention is a feat in and out of itself. I wish to meet him some time, perhaps he shares traits similar to my beloved." It was interesting, the two images of Takeru that clearly formed in Meiya's head. They were so different, yet still the same man.

"Eh? Is Koubuin-sama in a relationship as well!?"

"Indeed, although mine is more of a… distribution type of affiliation."

"Errm…? So that means…?" Meiya reflected for a short period whether to be open with her status or not.

"Do I have your word that this information will not reach the ears of any other?"

"Of course, I promise not to tell!" Akira was a bit tense, but in the good way.

"Very well… with my… actually, how do you describe a relationship with a man of whom one shares a mutual romantic interest with each other?"

"Urrr… that would be… your boyfriend?" Very direct, way too direct.

"Ehh… hum, I shall accept that title for this once. Yes, I share a polygamous relationship with him." Meiya flashed red for the shortest of instant.

"Poly… gamers?"

"Polygamous, of which a man enjoys the company of multiple females."

"Hrrrm?" An adorable head tilt from Akira later.

"It means… I- err, share him with other girls in our unit." Still no response. Isumi junior's lack of understanding was causing Meiya embarrassment.

"We—! I'm part of his h-harem!"

"Oh, ooooh… OOOOOOHHHH! WHAAAAAAT!?" That was within expectation.

"Please, do not be so alarmed, Akir—"

"SO! So-sososo-SO—! T-t-that like—! But then- ho-hohow would you- EEEEEEEH?!"

"Akira. Control yourself." One of the few times Meiya spoke grievously, and it did just fine in shutting up the astounded girl. Coming to realization, Akira covered in own mouth with her hands.

"…Sorry."

"Now, now; my standing with him is little of your concern, I can relate to how you have complications in acknowledging me, but please do not think of my preference as abnormal."

"Of-of course, Koubuin-sama! I'm sorry, I was just surprised by it, that's all. I actually think it's very nice, for you to be so generous and s-share a man with others! Is everyone… happy with each other?" Meiya had to consider for a minute.

"Yes, mostly."

"Then it's all good! Honestly, I kinda hope Masaki-chan would be brave enough to ask us of this. That'll stop everyone from fighting and make us all happy instead…" Akira dampened their mood accidentally, it was a tough situation she found herself in.

"All shall be well, child. I believe in your blood's willingness to sort out your strife."

"Ahaha, hopefully that'll be the case. Well, I think that takes care of the supply line, Koubuin-sama. What'll you do now?" All around them TSFs were progressively disappearing, following the flow of battle forward.

"Hum, I shall head back as well. This conversation has been very insightful to me, I have learned a great deal from you, Akira." Meiya revved up her engines once more, this pleasant talk with an innocent girl cleared her mind of any impure ideas.

"Eh, really? I don't really think my stuff is anything impressive…"

"Huhuhu, underestimate yourself not. You are a splendid human being indeed, I owe you my gratitude, Isumi Akira." Was it not for her, Meiya might still be in a sulking spirit.

Nothing said by Akira directly gave Meiya the point, but it was her entire attitude that strengthened her will. The love she held dear for Takeru was grand, more spectacular than any other sensation. Meiya's role towards her country was her duty, so her feelings for Takeru were her true-self.

"Thank you very much, Koubuin-sama! Please stay safe out there!"

"Same to you, Akira. And I shall reunite with you again bearing a wonderful surprise."

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Operation 21, 238 minutes in**

 **A-02 destination**

"—Valkyries 4, Fox 3 loaded, firing." Warheads of equal sizes were launched and subsequently combusted on three Fort-class wandering in A-02's way.

"—good effect, Kazama! All BETA forces on site are dead! We're clear!" Hayase yelled back a report from the front, her unit waltzed out from under the behemoth's carcass covered in blood.

"—Valkyries 1 copy, I'll forward this. —to CP, A-02 destination point is cleared, XG-70 is free to advance."

"—CP copy, XG-70 advancing to initial firing location, firing run will begin in ten minutes." Command's update brought a sigh to Michiru, her team's gruelling campaign on Sadogashima was about to meet its end.

"All units, make room for Susanoo to approach. Also, has anyone seen Shirogane's people? They're supposed to rendezvous with us here, but I don't see any TSFs on radar."

"—think maybe they're all dead?" Munakata suggested a very unpleasant thought, leading to the Valkyries being overwhelmed by silence.

"—ahahahahahaha!" And then a collective laughter.

"Aheheh, I wish. Capt. Shirogane probably forgot to turn off his stealth tech, because whoever's killing that BETA Regiment over there is looking like his people." Kashiwagi was the first to spot A-01's other leader.

Steadily, a Platoon of an YF-23, a Su-47 Berkut and two F-22A Raptors wiped off BETA groups by the thousands as they hovered back to Michiru's location. Outside her calculation, instead of leading his team at the front, Kagami the one who flew her crimson Berkut the farthest forward.

Even over the shading of its red camo, Michiru couldn't help but wonder how many she slew with those Motor Blades for them to be painted in pure gore. Hayase defeated no small number of aliens on her own, but she definitely didn't take a dive in BETA blood.

"—ayy, Valkyries! Before we do anything you all should move from where you're standing, we're shooting down a restock station right there." The first words from Shirogane were a well mentioned warning, albeit carried out in his usual casual tone.

"Uh-huh, mind if we take some leftovers?" Michiru was also in need of ammunition.

"Actually, that might be a breach of our contract with the States and the Soviets… but fuuuuuccck that, help yourselves."

Not a minute later, a dozen resupply containers touched down. The Archangels made haste in reloading and switching out their used gear, which was all of their gear.

American CIWS swords, Russian Motor Blade belts; Shirogane and Kagami were dropping their old tools in favour of brand new melee weapons of destruction. Side by side, Yoroi and Tamase picked out their rifle magazines and guided shell containers respectively.

"Oooooh, Shiroganeeee! That Melee Halberd! Gimme, gimme!"

"Ahha! Muh sword! You thief!" While accusing Hayase, he did nothing to stop her robbery as she ran away swinging.

"Seriously though, you got some nice toys here lined up, Shirogane. Privilege for the elites?" Munakata asked, studying his treasure cove of goods.

"The best of the best, woman."

"Good shit, Shirogane." She raised him a thumb of approval.

"Where're the rest of your people? The attack will be starting any minute now." The professional Isumi was more troubled by their missing numbers than what he had in stock.

"Right, are all your girls here, Isumi?"

"Sure are, just waiting on you."

"Good, I'll gather them." And a couple of calls were made to the correct people. While she waited, two fast beeps on her comms let Isumi know someone from their CP had information to share.

"—Valkyries Mum to all STF units, emergency update. Detection on multiple BETA Divisions advancing on A-02's initial position, counter climbing past thirty thousand, confirmed Laser-class presence."

"—what?! They're more heading for us? We just killed a couple of Divisions! What happened to the distraction teams!? They're healthy as can be!" Yoroi made a reasonable observation.

"—bad time to ponder then, Mikoto-chan! Right now we just have to… actually, how fast are they coming at?" Kagami also took her turn to post a question.

"Hostile vanguard advancing at a steady sixty km/h, ETA twelve minutes."

"Pfff, ahaha! Then we're sweating for nothing, Susanoo'll shoot first." Being Shirogane, the team Captain declared the emergency to be resolved.

"You sure about that? We're still waiting on your team."

"You worry too much, Isumi. Thirty thousand is just a droplet anyway." This man was oozing with confidence as he brushed his hairstyle to pass the time.

 **Sakaki Chizuru**

 **Operation 21, 242 minutes in**

 **Hive gate**

"—Ayamine, timer is up. We're leaving."

"—copy, copy. Think we're done here anyway."

Surely enough, Chizuru and Ayamine were surrounded by friendly Orbital Divers instead of man-eating BETA. The F-15s cooperating with them were setting up a siege around the Stab entrance in case anymore aliens crawl out in chase.

"—Aquila 1 to Archangel 4, we have received new orders. Stab infiltration will be handled by UN Special Forces, that's your people, right?" One of the Divers called Chizuru to restate his own instructions.

"—affirmative, STF A-01 will begin Hive assault run in ten minutes, stay clear of the designated area. Don't get caught by friendly fire, mind you."

"Copy that, will avoid. We lost lotta good soldiers down there, pay'em back for it." Chizuru nodded profoundly, that was the plan all along.

"You got it. Alright, Archangel Element exiting your AO, good luck, Divers." Merrily, Chizuru flew away along with Ayamine, leaving their previous battle for the next.

"Hey, you are pretty good." In the middle of their flight, Ayamine popped off a quick compliment.

"Thanks? Why say that to me now?"

"Just thought… you did good in commanding people, didn't choke." Ayamine's expression remained unchanged, the casual praise sounded kind enough though.

"Well, I was trying to control the situation and sound mature, but just ended up talking like Takeru for some reason."

"Guy's a good leader, no fault in copying him."

"Guess I can agree to that, sure."

The Element pair shared no more words after that, a strange atmosphere dwelled on between the two former rivals who couldn't stand each other's presence. Chizuru recalled back to all the times she went head to head against Ayamine over the smallest subject, perhaps they still did, but now the hostility no longer lingered.

"You know… this'll be our first time going under, right?"

"Under as in Hive infiltration? Then yes, unless you experienced a hive operation already, Ayamine." She clicked her tongue and followed after with a short moan, there appeared to be something the spiky-haired girl wanted to say.

"Think you can… die for his sake?" Ayamine's blunt question knocked around Chizuru's mental balance, it wasn't exactly the raise to morale she wished to get.

"Dying for Takeru?"

"Dying for Takeru." With her facts all checked, Chizuru deliberated assiduously on her true answer.

"…Yeah, if I have to… I think I'm at the point in life when someone else's is finally more important than mine." Her resolve was set if the worst came to be.

"Damn, that's a good line… cool sounding stuff."

"Heh, thanks weirdo." Chizuru's intentional sneer went unnoticed by Ayamine.

"I… don't wanna die, I seriously don't wanna die. Dying would be bad… really, really bad." Those few sentences had a sorrowful tone compared to the rest.

"Ayamine, you okay?"

"Yeah, no… I'm just acting like a bitch, don't worry." But her look was straining to watch, Ayamine didn't show any signs of being totally okay.

"C'mon, you think this's my first time meeting you? What's going on?" Voluntarily going out of her comfort-zone, Chizuru was caring for her odd partner.

"Shit… I'm getting really scared right now, like my-whole-body-is-trembling kind of scared. Dunno why… can't stop shaking…! Sakaki… I- I want to keep living…"

"Ayamine…" A quirky and stoic ally was opening her heart to Chizuru, her nemesis never displayed such weakness before. However, Archangel's Class rep couldn't retort, because that fear was an intuition she sealed away until now.

"It makes no sense… I see this- I see this vision. We were in the stab, the two of us… BETA were everywhere. Just mountains of bodies pouring in; kept shooting, kept killing, but not good enough; too much of them… then we just die, and that's the end… then there's nothing left…"

Chizuru didn't want to admit to this bone-chilling terror going down her spine, she would do anything right then to stop her angst. For she saw it too, her own death; many times in fact, a big flash of white to end her life on, the dreadful sweat she woke up to many nights all caused by the same illusion.

"Stop… just stop talking about it, you're bringing yourself down like this, dumbass. We'll be with everyone, we even got the Susanoo here this time. Just- stop thinking too much, alright?"

"This time'…? So you saw it too—" One slip-up revised everything's meaning.

"Enough, enough! You'll be fine, Ayamine! You'll live, I'll live! Honestly! Who want to die in that hell-hole down there!? Calm down and use your brain; we won't get separated like headless chickens, keep your guard up and stay alert! Then we'll be fine!" For the longest time, Ayamine said nothing.

"…What a death flag, you gotta be put on suicide watch." And now she was back, the regular Ayamine.

"Sure, sure, protect my back, alright?"

"Naaah… you'll be fine."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 246 minutes in**

 **A-02 destination**

"—look, look, Takeru-chan!"

"—you want something?"

"Look! Here comes dat boi!" I turned my gaze up.

"Wut."

"O shit waddup!"

"…Fucking… wut?" Icanteven. jpg

"Huh? Don't you get it? It's that unicycle riding frog joke!" I was honestly plain speechless.

"It's called a meme, you fucking stupid bitch… still that was pretty good, Sad Jordan/10."

"You're such a terrible person but thanks, Takeru-chan!" Her fighter waved energetically for me.

Honestly, this shit was too much to explain in words. It was an older meme too, but it checked out.

"—oh, look! Dat boi! Ahaha, I haven't seen it in soooo long!" Somehow, Mikoto also had memories connected to our frog here.

"Allllright then, guess everyone knows it. Seriously, is none of you remotely amazed by the XG? I am disappoint."

"—ahehe, Tama thinks the XG-70 looks amazing and powerful! I can't wait for it to shoot something! Dat boi is here to cheer us up too!" Apparently that was what a unicycle-riding frog meant to Tama.

"—Element B arrived… yo… isn't that dat boi? You legit, Takeru."

"—ah, you're right, it is dat boi. But… why?"

There was Ayamine and Class rep flying over in their Shiranui Seconds, all with their own input on this beautiful piece of art.

"Apparently you both know it as well! Why not, that's FUCKING GREAT!" I wasn't angry, really.

"Look how cute it is! It's super cute!"

"Yaaay, dat boi!" No problems from Tama and Mikoto.

" _Ha-ha-ha! And you weren't happy with seeing dat boi on the XG! Takeru-chan you fool!_ " In the most retarded manner possible, Sumika laughed at me through telepathy; which was impossible, so she had to pronounce her laughter.

" _Goddamn you bitch, how much time did it take to paint that thing?_ "

" _About three days! I told sensei when we were at Yukon!_ " Look, if they were happy, I was happy. It didn't make any difference to me what boi was available.

—

"—Element A on station."

"—Takeru, we have returned, shall we begin… is that a… frog riding a unicycle?" Even Meiya noticed dat boi before noticing the Susanoo, this was incredible in so many ways.

"—SHUT UP! -I'm sorry, just don't ask." Too much meant too much.

"…I see? Anyway, shall we begin the attack run now? I see that Susanoo has arrived ahead of us." And had been waiting here for like an eternity, but we didn't need to mention that.

"Yee, get this shit done and over with fast. What's the score now, Kasumi? You updating?"

"Affirmative, Sumika-san in is lead with two thousand fifty-seven points." She was generous in sparing me from listening to the entire breakdown.

"Nice going, Sumika. For once I'll praise you on that great KD."

"—really!? That's a nonpareil praise from you!"

"…A what praise?" Did she- did she just outsmart me?

"Haha! A word Takeru-chan doesn't know! Suck it idioooot!" Then what did I witness next? A tongue being stuck out at me from my monitor, Sumika was about to be introduced to a whole new level of spanking.

"Get OVER HERE BITC—"

"—HQ to Archangel lead, private call from Professor Kouzuki." That spanking was getting stored up for a better aging like wine, not forgetting about it.

"—Arc lead copy, you want something, sensei?"

"Oh, I dunno, maybe I just wanna begin Susanoo's attack run and save the day!? But you obviously got more important plans lined up." The salty salt was overflowing.

"Hey… chilllllll. Besides, we agreed the run will start once XG is in position, you didn't have to wait."

"Yeah? Sorry that I have trouble calling it when I see two of your people in Whiskey's AO, two of your people in Echo's AO and the rest of you amongst BETA occupied area!"

"I'm kinda glad you didn't blast us with the BETA, good on you, sensei." Seriously, old-school Yuuko wouldn't even bat an eye if she had to kill us all for victory.

"…Look, kid. I'm trying- and trying very hard to trust your dreamily philosophy of 'leave no man behind'. I can order Kagami to launch up that fortress anytime and all we'd have is a bad relationship afterwards. So please, Shirogane, you gotta stop messing around like a child. Do your goddamn job, soldier."

"Yuuko-sensei… sorry."

This was a reminder I sorely required, yet a warning I didn't wish to hear. The decades I wasted roaming this dying world dulled my sense of urgency, I must admit. I hated being grave in any situation, no matter its significance. Because to me, treating a circumstance humourlessly meant I acknowledged its severity, and I didn't want to write anything down in ink.

"I'm not criticizing you, Shirogane. The tension's getting to me, sorry. It's fine if you understand, I'll give the 00 unit permission to engage. We'll also provide what artillery we can for those Laser-class amongst the wave. Go get'em."

"Yes, ma'am." Once a blue moon, sensei received my ever so exotic salute. For there was nothing to joke about a life-or-death battle like this.

"Good luck, saviour of time." Dropping that abstruse title on me, Yuuko-sensei departed from our call.

"—Archangel lead to all A-01 fireteams, sixty seconds until XG-70 attack run begins. Check all systems, update data-link." One by one, all of my unit's signals displayed as functional, they were ready for whatever adversity we must face ahead.

"—Valkyries 1 to Archangel lead, all units all green. Standing by for firing order, you have control." Isumi willingly offered her service to me.

"Arc lead roger. All units, thanks to our little side activities here and there, Susanoo is coming up a bit late on the timer. It ain't no problem as long as we keep the incoming BETA herd off her while she charges her super cannon, we all got that?"

"—roger!" So far so good.

"It shouldn't be too difficult, we'll split our two Squadrons to five Platoons and cover all angles of exposure. Laser-class are priority, but letting a few shots slip through is okay as long as Susanoo isn't hit too hard at once. Make sure that doesn't happen."

"—warning. Hostile BETA force approaching, confirmed Laser-class presence, contact imminent." Kasumi was good on reporting the essential in the fewest words.

"No time to explain, Valkyries, decide your vanguards, two Platoon up front and three behind. Let's go and fuck'em up."

—

"—Arc 5, sync. Cover my reload."

"—copy, switching to halberd!"

Trusting the mechanical parts of my YF-23, I handed an empty rifle to the Mount Pylon for a new magazine to be inserted. And sure enough, a fully loaded gun was retrieved a moment later as I watched Meiya skewer a bunch of BETA during my inactive period.

"—hoooo! Let me give you a love-tap you UGLY ASSHOLES!"

"—First Lieutenant, please. That's disgusting." Hayase was sorta in a world of her own at the time, listening to her cringe-worthy lines was bad for my mentality. As for Takahara, I kinda liked that kid, got a funny bone.

"—Arc 7 on me, focus down the marked enemies!"

"—sure… I'm okay with that."

"Ayamine, you go for the Fort-class's legs! I got cover!"

"Arc 7 copy, sync on you."

The award for most cooperative teammates seemed to be rolling towards Ayamine and Class rep's way again, they were really redeeming for the pain I suffered back when I tried to make them not kill each other.

For the three Squadrons to our rear who were tasked with long-range support, they were doing their jobs just dandy. Haruko and Tama were doing their best spitting hot lead at any monsters we missed, so were Mikoto and Kazama with their accurate barrages.

If anything was missing from this picture of perfect BETA slaughter, that would be Sumika and Kasumi's tag-team Berkuts. For technical reasons, they couldn't really participate in some old-fashioned TSF combat.

"—Moorcock-Lechte engine full activation confirmed, Rutherford Field online. Rutherford Field operating percentage; seven percent, increasing." How often I missed the times when I got to enjoy Sumika's voice in complete monotone.

"—Eclipse Unit synchronization decreasing; Eclipse Unit operation unsustainable; Eclipse Unit retracting from AO."

"—Kasumi, you sure pulling out the Berkuts is a good idea?" The Whiskey people might not like that.

"Negative disputation, Takeru-san. Sumika-san cannot sustain connecting to both Susanoo and the Esper system at once, her strain is greater than prediction. We will recall Eclipse Unit once the Moorcock-Lechte drive is stable."

"Fair enough. Just to check up again, she'll be fine, right? Nothing out of ordinary is going on here?"

"Yes, Sumika-san is capable of intended actions. No cause for concern." A reassurance from Kasumi was the best I could possibly hope for.

"Rutherford Field operating percentage; eighty-one percent, increasing. XG-70b stability established, charging particle cannon." How speedy the force barrier got to work, Sumika sure was doing a good job.

 _Hey, Sumika. You're not going mental on me again, right?_ Nevertheless, this unease in me was hard to let go.

" _I'll be fine, Takeru-chan! I've grown accustomed to your dirty thoughts, they can't faze me anymore!_ "

 _Perfect, especially when you experienced most of them firsthand._

" _Takeru-CHAN! Don't say that! Even if it's true!_ " That honesty has got to count for something, Sumika was making progress in her training.

"—Valkyries Mum to all units, artillery pattern is changing to accommodate BETA formation. A-02 firing in twenty seconds, evacuate the danger zone immediately."

"Arc 1 to fireteams, clear the firing line now! Move it, everyone!" None were disinclined to evade a foolish and unnecessary death.

The ticking of an invisible clock was resonating its signal note in the back of my head, the constant flow of seconds gave us no period of rest. But that was a problem no longer, for it was only her waiting on that perfect flash to unleash devastation forged from humanity's hope upon the monsters.

"Warning. Six detected laser sources converging on XG-70 position."

There were six of them, Kasumi's advisory was again perfect accurate as expected, excluding the fact that they served little to zero purpose. Like the first time I witnessed its power, the opening beams erupted a storm of dust and sand on impact, masking their deflection and delaying the awe of others.

Wordless was the common symptoms of both A-01 Squadrons on the field right now, eyes widened to the brim were stunned beyond belief by the performance of mankind's miracle. And by the way it emerged harmlessly from an arena of fire, I would bet Sumika's mount was worth every penny.

"Warning. Additional laser sources detected, counting three shooters converging." Kasumi's bad callouts were bad like always, funny how she never really fixed that habit of not speaking Japanese.

As for why I became distracted at the most principal moment, well… watching Sumika tanking shots was that much of an entertainment.

 _Can we just please shoot them back now?_

" _Geez, Takeru-chan! You see how I got this like- huuuge cannon here!? Yeah! This needs preparing!_ "

 _Then can you please hurr—_

" _It's done, XG-70b, beginning particle cannon firing sequence._ " This bitch.

"Particle cannon energy output stability."

"Confirmed."

"Moorcock-Lechte Engine levitation stability."

"Confirmed."

"Rutherford Field deactivation controls."

"Confirmed."

"Firing permission."

"Confirmed."

What a long shopping list Kasumi had to read off, was there always this much work involved in blowing up BETA?

"Cannon hatches opening, guidance targeting complete. Recoil concussion prevention set. All settings normal, zero anomaly detected." My angle wasn't the best for observing Sumika's long-life achievement, but from the light that was congregating at Susanoo's front, this was gonna be one hell of a firework.

"Pew-pew up the party, blast'em to pieces Sumika. Fire!"

"Boom-shakalaka!" What a fun phrase to say indeed, didn't think she would go for that one.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Operation 21, 253 minutes in**

 **Mogami-class Heavy Cruiser, UN-Imperial 3rd Fleet Flagship, Mogami**

For the longest time, Yuuko hated how people often misused the theory of relativity for their sensation of time dilation. Sure, the two were similar to almost exact principals, but there was still a bit of difference between time slowing down based on the overseers' perspective and seeing shit in slow-motion just because.

For now though, she accepted some occurrences truly were powerful enough to clearly alter one's perception of time, and she admitted on personal experience.

"…So…err, that worked."

"…Yes." The ship captain said even less than Yuuko herself.

Words failed to explain the pure wonderment of perceiving what the XG-70 had accomplished, it simply was all gone; the Monument that stood on behalf of humanity's failure, people's humiliation was wiped off the map in one shot. For all intents and purposes, this was another changing point in history, another rift in the sea of causality.

"Seventy seconds until A-02 particle cannon reaches critical energy point. Confirmation is true for Monument destruction. All but the base structure has crumbled." Per regulation, 1st Lt. Piatif updated Yuuko on their success.

"Piatif, you're pretty calm right… guess not, huh?" When she saw the First Lieutenant's face, there were teardrops secretly dribbling down her pink cheeks.

As for Yuuko, crying would be too much of an embarrassment, so she hid behind her usual smirk instead.

"Wonderful… simply magnificent power! …I am grateful, XO Kouzuki… this weapon, may be the one to lead us to survival."

"No, no, Captain. I believe the correct word here is victory." Yuuko knew he would appreciate that very much.

"Ahahaha…! Perhaps so, never before in the past has any human ever dealt this amount of damage to a Phase 4 hive. You have no doubt carved your name into humanity's history, Professor."

"History… huh? What good is something already set in stone, really? What I want… what we want is the future, this future here will lead to people's salvation. That is what we are after, our goal." The captain nodded, not further pursuing the topic of whomever Yuuko deemed to be her equal.

"I understand, once this operation is over, the time for celebration is nigh." She provided her answer with a fast grin.

Of course, there was already plenty of celebration as heard from within the bridge. Deafening screams of joy and excitement actually annoyed Yuuko a little, she just didn't like getting ear blasted even for a good cause.

"So 1st Lieutenant Silvio, wanna rain down some praises on me?" Next, the Vice-Commander turned her attention to the tag-along European.

"…What can I say, Professor. I'm just glad I wore these shades." The young man expressed as he pushed up his glasses, earning a laugh from Yuuko.

"Huhuhu, good for you then. Don't miss out after the commercial."

"Oh, I believe we already passed that part." Whether her joke went through fully or not, Yuuko constructed a concrete point to the Italian spy.

"-Valkyries Mum to all callsigns, one hundred twenty seconds until A-02 fires again, Move to rear support positions." Suzumiya too returned to her job.

"Let's keep watching, captain. Who knows what other tricks I got hidden."

"I agree, you never cease to amaze, XO Kouzuki."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 254 minutes in**

 **A-02 firing route**

"—Monument deconstruction confirmed, all hostiles eliminated on sector E-23-54 to Y-01-12." Just in case some of us went blind from its awesomeness, Kasumi reread a report for us.

"—resupply coming down, people… c'mon! Don't sit still, let's move it!" Isumi got her yell in before me.

"—ahh…" Collective stupor was always a sight to behold.

"—yes, yes! Amazing shit, I know! But if you're too busy crying we won't get time to restock! The containers are here so load up on any bullets you need, we won't get another chance until more lines are built underneath." I too had to add my encouragement.

The XG-70's cannon was pretty sweet, it shot a bunch of stuff and stuff. Yeah, it was alright. I didn't really have too much of an opinion, seen this shit way too many times to be surprised.

Although the same couldn't be said for my girls. Keen eyes stared unmoving towards the direction of XG-70's handiwork, there were locked in place for almost an entire minute after its shot, not muttering a single word and letting their expression do the talking.

"—this strength, this prowess… never on my life have I ever imagined … a milestone such as this shall surely go forever honoured in the river of time. Takeru… please lend me your ear and carry on my message to the Professor; speaking for the people of our empire, we thank you for this remission of our suffering."

"…Meiya… sorry but I'm gonna need you to write that one down, didn't copy." Being too solemn about all this, Meiya even leaked some tears as she bowed her head to the camera.

"Huhuhu, I must." Filled with recognition, she smiled again.

"—all units, A-02 will fire again in ten seconds. Beware of shockwave and flash exposure." That was Suzumiya calling for the start of round two.

"—Takeru-chan, Takeru-chan! Watch out! I'm shooting again!" Good for Sumika that she used an encrypted channel for its intended purpose.

"Don't let me stop you, fire!"

"Booooom- shakalaka!" She really liked that line.

—

And the Susanoo was like- PEEEEEEW! And them BETA were like- arrgggaaaa.

"—shot on target, good effect. Hive main shaft taken heavy damage." Kasumi, back at it again with the Captain Obvious.

"—Arc 4 resupply complete, switching out." Thanks to Isumi taking over temporary leader duty, I had some free time to mess around as we waited for our turn on the supply drops.

"—c'mon, Class rep. Why you no like particle cannon?"Class rep didn't even seem all that impressed by our literal robot-sized BFG, how could she not light up that hype?

"Where you get that idea from? Susanoo is freaking amazing!"

"You don't really look all that happy though." This was the part where I distract myself with petty chit-chat to not think about other girls' tits… and asses, I am fair to both.

"No, it's just hard to find a proper reaction after seeing… that. Never would I dream of something like this, Takeru."

"Huu… alright, I'll allow it."

"Hey, errm… listen, Takeru; What Mitsurugi said just now is probably way better than me but- I do want you to know that I appreciate everything as well, you know? Say thanks to the Vice-Commander for me, I'm sure father will think the same once he sees this." She was a bit timid when she revealed her gratefulness.

"No problem. You did well, Chizuru, keep that up."

"Ahha… yeah, okay." There was some degree of cute shyness when I called her real name.

"—you two done…? I need bullets too." Rudely cutting in as appointed by her nature, Ayamine was having none of this.

"Sup, you can go ahead."

"Cool. And hey, Takeru-" What I didn't predict was Ayamine wanting my attention as well.

"Yeah?"

"You da real MVP."

"Thanks."

And really, all we had to say was that. Communication never was a problem between Ayamine and I, without bitching we always got the most amount of detail through in the least amount of syllables. Why should this time be any different?

Also; God, that meme was ancient.

"—attention, all units. A-02 will now proceed outside of operation outline. After creating a slope leading up the ravine, Susanoo will open fire on remaining BETA forces to left and right of the Hive, eradicating the diverted groups currently engaging Whiskey and Echo. Both fireteams are to continue safeguard."

Suzumiya check up with us again, bringing a slight change to mission along. Apparently the main teams were still pretty shitty and needed Sumika's assistance, too bad they weren't L33t enough like us.

"—Valkyries 1 copy."

"—Arc lead copy." Happy with our response, Suzumiya departed the lovely fun-land of our comms.

"Shirogane, what does she mean by creating a slope? The walls here are pretty tall." Isumi was talking about the valley we were in, I would say the cliffs were around a hundred fifty metres-ish? Definitely not something to be scaled easily.

"She probably got a way, we'll wait and see."

"She?" Fuck me that was a slip of the tongue.

"…You know, the XG-70, like how ship people call their boats 'she'." Nice save, I was a clever boy.

"Ah, got you. Then guess we must wait, keep your eyes open." There went Isumi as well.

"—Sumika, how you planning on doing this?" Now onto the private call.

"—oh, oh! Watch, watch!"

As I stood beside the Susanoo unsure of its next step, the 00 unit suddenly ordered her giant fortress to unleash the full load of its railgun into the overhangs. By totally pure luck, this absurd strategy somehow resulted in zero friendly injury and instead shaped a makeshift ramp going alongside the ravine.

"Hooooly fucking… that's one way." To be fair, she said she would make a ramp, and she did.

I hopped back onto the open channel to discover all of my girls sharing the same bewilderment as me, not forgetting the Valkyries who were equally baffled. When their glares all converged on me like looking at the culprit behind bars, I could only raise my hands to implore for innocence.

Because I had absolutely no clue why in the fuck Sumika must fire her railgun to make an exit.

"See!? It worked perfectly!"

"I fucking hate you."

"Smooch! Love you too, Takeru-chan!" She blew me a kiss, quite a rare act of affection, although saying smooch out loud was just plain stupid.

So we attempted to cover Susanoo as it rode up the valley on the landslide it detonated seconds earlier. I was certain most my team members were all enduring pressure in their own way, seeing something like the XG mowing down a Hive's Monument in one shot was no way of easing the tension.

In fact, I could notice a bit of sweats of each and everyone's faces. The Eishis had undergone trials of different struggle to reach where they were today, all for the purpose of attaining the project for humanity's salvation. Alternative IV was our objective to meet, no matter the pain or the suffering.

Of course, I too was seriously hoping for nothing out of the ordinary. Ignoring how aliens crawling away at people's faces were a normal thing these days, it would be wonderfully nice and relaxing if shit didn't go south.

 **S******** T*******

 **Operation 21, 259 minutes in**

 **A-02 firing route**

"—caution, strange reading present on seismometer. Scanning for potential earthquake, standby." Ever so calmly, Kasumi noted a change.

"—earthquake? I'm not picking up anything, could it be the aftershock from Susanoo?"

"Negative… confirmed detection on Primary wave… seven minutes ago…! —emergency! Detected inbound large-scale earthquake! Epicentre predicted at…!" Abruptly ceasing her warning, there was a rush of panic and fear onto the Russian girl's face.

"Kasumi! What's going on here!?" Her immediate but cut-off alarm put our whole Squadron on full alert.

"Velocity equals square-root K plus three four Mu over P equals square-root 96 plus 3/4 0.44332 over 2.67…" Kasumi continued off muttering more math terms he had no business understanding in his life.

"Ay, hey! Kasumi, talk to me!"

"—Shirogane! There's an earthquake coming in!? When!?" Isumi shouted in a dense panic.

"I don't know! Kasumi's doing the calculation!"

"No…! 9.4 on the Richter scale… incoming at—"

At those exact words, the world trembled like never before.

—

"Brace, BRACE!"

"—shit-what the FUCK—! The ground's splitting up!"

"Off the ground! All units off the ground!"

"—arugga the hell's happenin-! TOUKO! WATCH OUT!"

"—Misae NO!"

"—HARUKO! HURRY! FLY UP!

"—DAMN IT! My booster-fin's stuck! Stop pulling me-just GO!"

"Watch out for the rocks! Boulders are dropping from the top!"

"—Capt. Isumi, stay clear!"

"—TAKERU-CHAN! Slope is breaking apart! I can't maintain altitude, Susanoo is FALLING DOWN!"

[GRAVITATIONAL DEVIATION ALERT]

"SHIT! All units, EVADE! A-02 is losing foothold!"

CAUTION, automatic evasive maneuver engaged

"—Aggruraa! This thing is—! Ayamine! Dodge left, we gotta get out!"

"—fucking auto-control! It's forcing us—!"

"What're you doing!? CHIZURU! KEI! PULL UP!"

"I-I can't! It's pushing us down into the hole! SHIT!"

"I throw you up, Sakaki! Get behind my—"

"I CAN'T MOVE OUT FROM UNDER HERE! Don't try to— arrhhgga—!"

"—CAUTION! Second wave incoming! BRACE!"

And like so, the earth opened, swallowing whole.

 **Author's note**

Another update, yaaaaay.

Been playing a lotta GTA V on my new computer these days, finally have joined the /Pcmasterrace, feelsgoodman.

Edit: this chapter was originally uploaded with libreoffice, little did I know how much it fucked up the formatting on this site, now and will again use Word.

BETA done by chad001, really got nothing this time.


	42. Missing 21 Grams III

**H***** M********

 **August 6, 1999**

 **Yokohama Hive, Operation Lucifer**

"— _UN Space Command to all units deployed around Hive 22, evacuate immediately. I repeat, evacuate immediately."_

[ _WARNING, CODE 666. Immediate evacuation order_ ] It flashed red, again and again above her screen. It was as blinding as it was irritating, but for the time-being, this was the least of her concern.

 _Why is he doing this? Can he not hear the alarms? Can he not see the notification? Why is Shinji not stopping his reckless actions? He has done enough, they will surely award him medals for his valour, he shouldn't keep going._

 _Come back to me, this is no place for you to die._

And still, she could only watch him go. The path he craved apart from the bodies of BETA shed red blood along its pavement, ruins of their home laid in waste beneath the feet of his battle-worn Type-94. Such beauty in his execution, such bravery in the heart of a man.

The lives he had saved must reached the hundreds by now, countless teams were relieved of their skirmish and exited the danger zone before the time limit expired. Still he boosted forward, earnestly hoping to rescue as many souls as he could grasp.

" _Repeat, we have launched a new anti-Hive weapon of mass destruction, evacuate immediately. Any unit caught within the blast area will be subject to lethal gravitational disruption._ "

But time was not his ally, from high above the heaven one dot of death rained down. Its descent uninterrupted by the congregation of lasers in their attempt to delay the inevitable, this should mean an end to their battle, this was to bring humanity's first victory.

"— _First Lieutenant! We have to assist Fireteam Dellingr! At this rate they'll be caught on the blast!"_ Her heartfelt plea met no answer for an untold amount of time.

"— _negative, Valkyries 7. We have our orders as well, there's nothing we can do for them now. 2nd Lt. Hayase, is it? I'm sorry."_

The sacrifice for the sake of triumph held no favourite. Death was the only promise equal to all men.

 _Please don't go, please don't leave me alone in this world. What about our promise? There's still so much I want to tell you; listen to our confessions and pick the partner you so desire. That is our destined future, at least let one of us enjoy happiness._

The prayer of a single girl was powerless in changing events already set in motion, her effort was like a pebble into the ocean, incapable of turning any tide.

"— _Takayuki! I know you can hear me! Just come back! PLEASE! You've done enough for everyone!_ " Her final resolution was to simply beg him, but it was the last solution she could come up with for a reason.

"— _I don't want there to be more…! In our city…! I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE TO DIE!_ " Was that sentence earmarked only for her? She didn't even know that.

" _STOP IT! You're just being stubborn! There're people waiting for you to come back!_ "

" _Mitsuki… I know that, but I already chose this… so maybe one day you two can still return to your daily lives. There no need to worry about me._ "

" _NO! TAKAYUKI! Don't say that! DON'T ACT LIKE THIS'S THE END!_ " Even if nothing was left, she still didn't want to believe.

" _Tell Haruka that I'm sorry too… neither of you deserve this… and Mitsuki, I lo—_ "

Too quick, it all ended too quick. August 6, 1999, 0815 hours. The day her life ended with his.

" _TAKAYUKI! NARUMI TAKAYUKI!_ "

—

"HAYASE! WHAT THE FUCK'S wrong with you! Move, MOVE!"

 **Hayase Mitsuki**

 **December 25, 2001, Operation 21, 260 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Island, Sadogashima Hive**

"—you dumb FUCK! You actual goddamn AUTISTIC RETARD! Why in the fuck were you just standing there!? Holy shit, WOMAN!" Her welcome back amongst the living was about as lively as one would expect.

"—agrrgga! Shut up, Shirogane! Just- just shut up! You fucking kicked me!"

"Because your fat-ass was about to be a Hayase-sandwich… FUCK, that doesn't work!" Somehow more infuriated by his own joke than Mitsuki's mistake, Shirogane pursued her fault no further.

To be completely fair, it was on her own error which led to Shirogane's frustration. Mitsuki was slow to react when the earthquake hit, similar to how she had been behaving since the start of Op 21. Watching the XG-70's awe-inspiring weapon was another trigger, bringing back memories she couldn't discard.

"Shirogane, listen… sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention." Admitting guilt wasn't a habit of Mitsuki's, but this was a time she must step up to show at minimum an apology.

"It's fine… your frame doing okay?"

"Yeah, yours?"

"I'm good."

It was a strong boot Shirogane's YF-23 delivered to her Shiranui's back, plenty forceful to thrust her out of a giant stone's fall. Still, if she was even a tiny bit more heedful, Mitsuki wouldn't have fell down the huge cavity in the first place.

"—alright, our data-link ate shit on the way down, all units receiving me, give me a callsign and system status." That was not a lie from Shirogane, Mitsuki could connect to nobody else other than herself.

"—Archangel 8 re-reporting in! My system is good, no malfunction!"

"—Archangel 5 present, combat status maintained, all system green."

"—this's Valkyries 5, I'm okay… I'm okay."

"—Valkyries 7 is here too! My machine is good! Nothing wrong with it!"

"Valkyries 2, other than your shoe mark on my ass my 94 ain't broken." Mitsuki shoved her update in there.

"—Valkyries 8, TSF's fine, don't worry about me."

Mitsuki took this time to survey around their formation herself, their liveliest moments were undeniably behind them. From what she could gather based purely on visual, there were seven TSFs including herself, while none had taken extreme damage from the drop, no frames were in pitch-perfect condition either.

"Okay! Good thing I'm not reading any BETA around us. So we got Meiya, Tama, Hayase, Akane… Tsukiji and Takahara, anyone I missed?" No reply.

"At least we're all alive, shit. Meiya, try to reach CP, although don't think that's gonna happen."

"Roger, —this is Archangel 5 of STF A-01, Command Post, please respond…" The girl went busy for quite a while.

"How far did we fall?" There was no instant answer to Shirogane's first inquiry.

"…Errm, without data-link I can't give an accurate count, but the bathometer says we're around five hundred metres below sea-level." Eventually the assumed truth came from Akane.

"So what? We're at about eight to nine Halls down? Predicted total level of Sado Hive is about twenty-five levels, there's some way to go… son of a bitch."

"On the bright side, we're already infiltrated one third of the Hive." Mitsuki tried her hand at lightening the mood, it was effective.

"Right, next, anyone saw Chizuru or Ayamine- that's Arc 4 and 7, the pair in Shiranui Seconds."

"Ahh… yes! I saw Chizuru-san and Kei-san continue falling down this shaft!" Tsukiji was the one to provide this time.

"Fuck me, this boulder here blocked off our path from going down… that's really bad, those two are isolated." Shirogane was keeping his cool as the situation brought no good news.

Mitsuki studied the long Hall again; according to her recollection, their provisional team of Eishis who didn't take-off in time sunk into the earth after it broke apart. A Shaft beneath them lengthened their dive until the rock in front of them cut off the path with another totally shutting down any chances at removing their obstacles.

"Arrga, they'll have to manage. Okay, okay. All units stand down for now while I try to get the Susanoo back online, call if you see anything on sensor. Cutting audio and visual for now, Tama, remote me."

"Roger!"

For unexplainable reasons, Mitsuki missed the existence of the XG-70 until Shirogane mentioned it. The blue-haired girl went in daze for about a dozen seconds, contemplating her serious lack of awareness as to how she could fail to notice such a behemoth.

Once she was done self-loathing, Mitsuki watched Shirogane hover his way up the top and disembarked there. Afterwards, his shadow disappeared somewhere within the Susanoo.

"-Wake up, you dumb bitch. Wake up!" That was up to the part where he shouted over their open comms a few minutes later.

"You doing fine, girl? …No, this time it isn't your bad. …Yeah, fucking earthquake just happened, Mother Nature is being a total shithead to us. …But still, there's a bunch of wires all over this place, you're like a literally The Major here. …No, from Public Security Section 9! You never seen it?"

The glances Mitsuki traded with the rest of Valkyries and Archangel were on the 'absolutely speechless' level of shock, because apparently Shirogane's standard for radio silence was different from a normal person's interpretation.

"Seriously though, it's all about cyberpunk and shit… aeee, it's pretty good, I'll watch it with you next time, we probably got it in this world as well. Anyway, Sumi— huh? My comms? But I alre— eeeeee… I forg—" Fortunately, Shirogane realized his mistake fairly early.

"So… errr, the 00 unit is sentient…?! Whaaaa-!?" A proper reaction from Akane indeed.

"Suzumiya, I will politely ask you to delay the discussion centred around this topic to a point where we are no longer submerged in danger. Please remember that what you may or may not have heard is definitely highly classified." Mitsurugi called out Akane, something Mitsuki didn't really thought she would do.

"Ah, right, sorry about that."

"As long as you understand."

"-But still, you're not that surprised, are you, Mitsurugi?" Adding a follow-up wasn't the best course of action, Mitsuki knew that, but she still was a curious girl.

"…For reasons unknown, I have predicted for such event to hold true. Let us speak no more, Takeru has returned."

"—you got that right, and good save, Meiya." Then there was Shirogane, flying back in his TSF.

"Whatever, so what's the next step, Captain?" Truth be told, Mitsuki was indifferent to who or what the 00 unit was.

"All units, Susanoo is restarting the Moorcock-Lechte engine, it'll be reactivated in two minutes time. Our objectives have not changed, we will attempt to disable the Sadogashima Hive Reactor and secure any G-Element in that order. Shutting down their Hive is priority and we'll organize with that goal in mind."

A soft humming sound eventually boomed to a steady rhythm of XG-70's gravity engine. The giant tech rose gradually from its crash-landing position, balancing itself out as the pair of magnetic launchers flexed on its mounts.

"Meiya, you got anybody on that line?"

"Negative."

"Fuck, then we really are stuck here without data-link. We're blind down here, can't help that." There was no way to connect to the outside world from where they were.

"Hayase, Meiya, you two'll be vanguard for us; stay in front of the Susanoo and kill shit. Akane and Tsukiji are still sweepers, behind the Vanguards but before Susanoo. Takahara, you can stay behind the XG with me, I'll lend you an extra rifle as Gun Interceptor. Finally, Tama'll have to solo Rush Guard, watch our backs."

"Roger!" A communal positive account to Archangel's Captain.

Even under the pressure of having no clue to the future, Shirogane was still able to place calm and reasonable orders. Although the lax and entertaining tone in his voice was gone, Mitsuki couldn't help but be a bit jealous of his tranquility.

Because she urgently sought for a piece of mind right about now. _He_ _just wouldn't leave her alone._

"Good, A-02 will fire its railgun at any high density groups of target, hopefully this'll be an easy ride. Let's move, bitches, it's adventure time."

 **Ayamine Kei**

 **Non-chronological**

 **Operation 21, 262 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, underground**

"—does anyone copy? This is STF A-01 Archangel Squadron, Archangel 4. Can anyone here me?"

"—just stop it, Sakaki… we're alone here."

"Yeah… shit! I can't believe this! The bathometer tells me we're a kilometre below sea level! We dropped straight to the bottom!" That was a very good call for Sakaki to be upset.

"…Bikini Bottom?" Her one-liner had never met a colder reception.

"Don't even start with me, Ayamine."

"Sorry, sorry. Let's get back on track… status record?" Kei suggested documenting every step of their misfortune to review for a plausible solution.

"Right, currently we're two hundred sixty-two minutes into the operation. Estimated to be twenty stratums down and three minutes since landfall. Our weapon systems have taken minor damage, you lost two mags and my left Blade Sheath is jammed, but everything else is good."

"No data-link, no X-Y coordinates, no map, no radio. Can't reach any comms either." Kei finished the short briefing.

"Great, we're blind, deaf and mute, also lost. What do you think we should do next?"

"This giant rock is blocking the way… can only go forward."

Shortly after hitting the lowest point, both girls were almost instantaneously crushed by a large piece of rubble. Said rubble was also in the right place to jam up the other path and their way down, leaving the two with only a single straight Hall to travel.

"Takeru and the XG also fell, right? Maybe they'll reach us if we wait?"

"Maybe… but, we fell further, you saw where they stopped?"

"Earlier than us."

"…No shit."

"Fuck you."

"Fuck you too." A solid exchange of intelligent information.

"I don't think we should stay here, BETA probably will reach us before they do. And it's not as if Takeru's team can detect us even if they're close. I have a plan, since we're down here; let's get something done."

"…What're you thinking?"

"We should map out as much of this area as we can, maybe find a path to the main Hall that leads directly to the Reactor. Then we'll rendezvous with the Susanoo once they arrive and transfer the information, making their lives easier. So basically we're scouting the location."

"Hold on… this's around the 20th level, you're saying we go down further and find the Reactor?" Kei didn't like the sound of that, not one bit.

"Well, it'll be the best if we do actually find it, but generally gathering information is a good plan. Perhaps returning to this place for them to find us quicker. What do you say?"

"…No, that's crazy." Sakaki jerked her head to meet Kei's stare, her initial disbelief mood was taking a disapproving attitude.

"So what? We just sit here and do nothing?"

"No, we go and try to find them right now. Why risk dying when the main group will be here anyway?" In her reflection, Kei saw no problems with her strategy.

"That's just running away!"

"…How is regrouping with the big gun running?"

"Because we already neck-deep in BETA territory! Not surveying this place is wasting a golden opportunity!" Kei sighed momentarily, the light in Sakaki's eyes announced her firm faith in her righteousness.

"That info… is no good to anyone if we don't deliver it."

"Yeah! That's why I said we'll meet with the XG afterwards! When did I say we're setting up shop?!"

"Okay… let me just ask the kind monsters nicely not to chew our faces off then… it's perfect." Why was she so ignorant to her implication? Kei couldn't understand.

"What are you…? Ayamine, are you scared of fighting the BETA or something?" Kei twitched slightly when Sakaki stated her guess in that way.

"Fighting… and dying… are different, you said we're neck-deep in BETA territory. The risk of hanging around here is too damn high."

"Why're you suddenly acting like a bit— Ayamine! Now isn't the time to be afraid! Are you that susceptible to fear!?"

"No…! I- I just don't want to die here! I told you!" Not a flash after the sentence left her mouth, Kei wished she didn't say it.

"You COWARD!"

"You DUMBASS!"

"Do you even know how much people are dying out there!? Our countrymen! Our friends are staking their lives for our victory! And yet you're cowering here because you're too scared to take the chance!? Have you no shame, Ayamine!" Challenged by Sakaki's defamation, Kei couldn't lay still and take it.

"SHUT UP! You don't know anything about me! You said you saw it too! …No! It's the same…! The two of us! Down HERE! In another goddamn Hall! It's all happening again! We're just gonna end up dead!" By Sakaki's dreadful expression, Kei knew her horrible experience weren't hers alone.

"AYAMINE! That's ENOUGH! I'm saying we scout this place and that's FINAL! I can't afford to deal with your mental spaz right now! People are depending on us! WE HAVE TO GET THIS DONE!"

"FUCK OFF! I don't have a suicide pact with you! I'm not dying here again! NOT WITH YOU! This debt I bear…! I OWE IT TO HIM TO LIVE! This's jus—"

What terminated her heated scream wasn't anything feeble for a distraction, it was a big one; but more importantly, a fatal one.

"Scanners are showing activities right below us…? That shouldn't be right… what is this!? Forty-thousand…!?"

"Shit! Sakaki! We'll bitch this out later but we gotta run now!" Unexplainable urgency overwhelmed Kei's sense of logic, although this time she was fully committed on abiding by it.

"But this's solid bedrock between us and the— Jesus! Are they DIGGING UP!? Alright- let's go, let's go!" Thankfully, Sakaki's priority wasn't so skewered as to waste time by continue arguing.

Revitalizing her asleep engine, Kei's 94 Second jumped to life as its twin boosters blazed the ground underneath her with a wave of compressed air. Her and Sakaki's TSFs were soon taking to the air within the Hive's Hall, soaring away from their natural land-zone.

The temptation to sneak a peek behind her was at an all-time high, but the actual need for her to look back as low, as the thundering footsteps of countless BETA were adequately loud to be perceived from her cockpit.

"Okay, Ayamine! The plan for now is to just fly! We'll try our best to avoid any groups of BETA we encounter. Whichever passage, up or down we run into first that's relatively clear we'll head for, that okay with you!?"

"Leaving it to luck then… fine. I'll fly."

Dashing towards their undetermined destination, Kei and Sakaki couldn't predict what fortune or misfortune would be there to greet them around the next corner.

 **M******* M******

 **Non-Chronological**

 **2001**

 **Sadogashima**

"Urgggnnn…!" The pain, it was too much to handle; it was unbearable.

The abnormal loss of memory was a first for her, that on top of the constant torment her body tolerated was messing with her common-sense. What happened to her and her comrades? Where were they now? Why couldn't she move any part of her body?

So many questions and yet absolutely no answer, she barely recalled a degree of panic prior to this aching. It had something to do with her best friend… also she remembered a terrible… something happened, something that wasn't good. It wasn't good for anyone.

"—Mu… —! Pul- …ft! We gott- …ope-…!"

Tiredness, fatigue, drowsiness. She should rest here, that should ease the pain… it didn't sound too bad, in fact a break could be just what she needed to recover from the endless torture of the flesh.

A soft whimper, it probably was her voice. Definitely didn't sound like her, then again, what did she sound like originally anyway? Maybe she should talk to remind herself of her own voice.

"Aaah—" That didn't work, nothing came out. All she tasted was metal and the words didn't even leave her mouth; a bit salty, but mostly metallic.

The temperature was dropping a little in here, wherever she was. That didn't make sleeping too comfortable, but she'll somehow manage.

"SHIT! It's not bud—…! Lift from your side, —ama!"

This was a bit annoying though, why were people shouting outside her door? And just when things finally quieted down too, now the world was getting louder and louder again.

"It's- —od, -s good! …No! The cockpit's squashed! You can't rip it open, you could hurt her! Use a PB-knife to cut off the outside!" What a familiar voice, whoever was outside really didn't want her to have a good rest. It was a bit rude, seriously, disturbing a girl in her slumber was so uncalled for.

Then again, here wasn't the right place for Misae to nap.

"OKAY! Pull the metal sheet off there! It's open! Let me see!" So brightly lit suddenly everything became, Misae blinked twice sluggishly, taking a gulp of the natural air into her lungs.

"-Arrck! AGRRUga!" All it brought her was pain, the agony she thought already disappeared.

"Munakata, I'm coming! You oka-… oh god… KAZAMA! YOROI! She's hurt real bad! Get the first-aid now! We need patch her ASAP!" She could see clearly now, second to Touko, Isumi's lips were the closest to hers they had ever been.

"Munakata! No-no-no! Don't move, don't move! You'll be fine- just sit still! We gotcha, alright!?"

"Haa… overreacting… Captain…" Misae saw everything, the cruelty of the world never faded away as the excruciating suffering returned to plague her in full-force.

 **Kouzuki Yuuko**

 **Non-chronological**

 **Operation 21, 261 minutes in**

 **Mogami-class Heavy Cruiser, UN-Imperial 3rd Fleet Flagship, Mogami**

"Does your mother walk on a cane whenever she trips?"

"What!? Professor, what're you talking about?" In hindsight, Yuuko probably could've used a better metaphor.

"It means I'm fine, 1st Lt. Silvio. You don't need to hold me that tight."

"Oh, oh sorry, XO Kouzuki." Jerking away from Yuuko, the First Lieutenant might be hurt a bit more than she assumed.

"No… my bad, and thank you."

"It's not a problem, Professor." After a quick nod with one another, Yuuko was officially back in the game.

For an earthquake of all things to strike at this exact time was a wonder in and of itself, Yuuko seriously considered buying some lottery tickets right now for never before had her luck stacked this high.

Yuuko surveyed around the bridge, many of the sailors were either climbing off the steel floor of climbing back into their seats. Deliberating on the events, it was quite lucky the tsunami following the earthquake only shook up the ship instead of totally destroying the fleet.

"Piatif, Suzumiya, anyone! Give me situation report right now!"

"Owowowo…!" Guess it wouldn't be coming from Suzumiya.

"Ma'am, Whiskey front and Echo front are both falling back. The BETA forces are manning a heavy push against them, they're trying to establish a farther defence line. We also have reports of units being shot down by laser fire went attempting to gain attitude." Piatif deliver the news Yuuko demanded.

"Ah- in addition, BETA groups are surfacing from the cracks created by the earthquake! They're spread within and behind our units!" Valkyries' CP returned to post as well.

"Damn it… was this some part of their plan? If so, I've never seen a better timing. Son of a bitch, those assholes… Suzumiya, how's the STF? A-01, A-02, give me a status."

"Ma'am… we seem to be unable to contact both fireteams and A-02. Transmission in and out of the area appeared to be blocked by Metal Cloud." It was like a bad cherry on a rotten cake, just kept going downhill.

"Aggrrra, god- fuck- really?! Keep trying to raise them, let me know as soon as you get a connection."

"Yes, ma'am." There was Suzumiya's main job for the next few minutes.

"Admiral, how is the situation with our fleets, they're still organized?"

"To a certain extent, XO. A Destroyer from the 2nd Fleet has capsized due to the waves, rescue effort is currently underway. The rest of our fleet is combat effective."

"Okay, are the bombardments still happening?"

"Indeed." Yuuko wiped away a handful of sweat off her forehead for that one.

"That's good… that is good. Unless the BETA are sneaking up on us below the sea, we still have maritime dominance. Now onto damage control… Piatif, give me the XFJ Flight on Hiryu, I need them to do some work."

"Understood, forming communication link right away." 1st Lt. Takamura's profile was displayed on a monitor a few seconds later before Yuuko, she found it interesting the Imperial Guard had the foresight to already be dressing in her fortified suit.

"Professor Kouzuki, where are we needed?" There was no time to beat around the bush, for there was no bush at all.

"Takamura, take-off immediately and crowd control the BETA by Echo Unit. You'll be coming in from the west over their frontlines, the priority is to kill any stragglers that emerged from collapses within their supply line. Once you narrow down the fighting to only one side, then you're free to act as you please."

"Understood, ma'am. XFJ Defiance Flight prepping for launch, ETA five minutes. Please leave it to us, Professor."

"See to it." The channel was then emptied.

"Next, send out the Eclipse Unit on Hiryu as well, have them do the same thing as Defiance but for Whiskey Unit."

"But ma'am, without connection to the 00 unit, the Eclipse Unit will only be autopiloted by XM3." Piatif brought up a good debate.

"We have no time to waste at this, and I think she's done remote controlling them for this deployment. A shame too… never got too much data from it anyhow."

"…So- should I…?"

"Yeah, launch them."

"Understood, Eclipse Unit's ETA on site is seven minutes." Yuuko nodded in acknowledgement.

"Okay, Shirogane… supply and demand for a miracle is growing healthily here… c'mon and let me cash-in."

 **Maejima Masaki**

 **Non-chronological**

 **Operation 21, 261 minutes in**

 **Whiskey Unit**

"—GET DOWN, GET DOWN! Take cover on the terrain! We got Laser-class right behind that hill over there!"

It was total chaos in the blink of an eye. The already haunting sound of the BETA erupted from all around him, dragging countless comrades down into the darkness enveloped pit of this island. To survive, he and many of his teammates were forced into the air, that was yet another trap waiting for its prey.

In seconds, melted metal acted as hearses for its very dead passengers. Bursting into flames before again meeting the unmoving dirt. By sheer luck, Masaki persisted after the second round of their slaughter, but the game of death was far from over.

"—SHIT! My engines are hit! Somebody give me a hand here! I'm in the OPEN!"

"Maejima! Pull that dumbass back into cover! HURRY SON!"

"—r-roger, sir!" How long would this take? A dozen seconds? Half a minute? He couldn't be sure; facing danger to save the life of a friend should be an honour, although against such overwhelmingly powerful foes, a terrible fear was plaguing his hands.

"Wait, WAIT MAEJIMA! I think I see a— FUCK NO-NO-NO! LASER, LASE—" Explosions were everywhere, one of which took place directly in his face.

"SON OF A BITCH! Maejima! Get back here!" It was more of a single backtrack than a full retreat, Masaki didn't even make it outside of the cover.

"Captain! We're completely pinned down by laser fire over here! And there're more holes behind our line!"

"Don't think I can't read my map, son! I don't wanna know how the IRGs are living through this when we're face-planting in shit! And also where're those damn Russian machines at!? Now would be a good time for help!"

"CAPTAIN! I highly recommend we pull outta here! Right now we're getting sandwiched out the A-hole!" That was by no means an understatement in Masaki's head.

"…Alright, fuck! HQ ain't responding to anything right now! —Juncture 1 to all units in this AO! We're heading left to the coast until we're no longer surrounded and then heading back to the fourth supply line!"

"—Juncture 13, copy! Ready to move!"

"—Juncture 25, copy! On your mark, sir!"

From the sea of positive responses to a tactical withdrawal, there was a Platoon callsign Masaki thought was missing.

"Cracker Platoon! Cracker Platoon, does anyone copy!? Cracker 2, 3! Come in!"

"Captain! Is- are no one from the team answering!?" How could this happen? Why the worst-case scenario all of the sudden?

"Shit no! DAMN IT, with heavy metal all over the place radio is fucked! And we don't have those guys on data-link either! We gotta go now, Masaki!"

"Negative! We- I'm gonna find them!" to Masaki, he saw uncertainty as more devastating than the truth.

"Listen, kid! You go out there in this shitstorm and she'll be the one receiving your belongings! That girl's good, alright!? She can handle herself! We pull back now she'll probably be somewhere in that group!"

"S-Sir! Bu-but—"

"You're gonna have to trust her, you got that!? There's nothing you can do here except for not dying so LET'S FUCKING MOVE!"

To that, Masaki simply couldn't disagree.

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Operation 21, 269 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, A-02 collapse point**

"—Valkyries Mum! Valkyries 1 to Valkyries Mum! Do you copy!?"

"— -alky- …signa- recove- hortl- Valkyri- 1, established connection, copy?" Finally, something went right after the disaster.

"Valkyries Mum! A-02 has fallen into the collapse! We're unable to reach XG-70 or Archangel 1!"

"Roger, what is your available team?" Michiru performed her pervious headcount for this exact purpose.

"Other than me, we still have Archangel 2, 3, 6 and Valkyries 3, 4, 6, 9."

"Topside Task Force members confirmed. That will be 1st Lt. Kagami, Yashiro, 2nd Lt. Yoroi and 1st Lt. Munakata, 2nd Lt. Kazama, Kashiwagi, Asakura and you, correct?" Suzumiya's math was on point.

"Yes, but we lost two TSF and have injuries, count three W.I.A, two major. Requesting immediate Medevac." Above anything, Michiru must stay calm to allow rational thinking.

"Copy, we're in the process of reorganizing our forces right now. What is their severity?" It pained Michiru to see her fellow Eishis like this, however it still was lucky nobody got more hurt.

"Munakata's cockpit was crushed by the terrain; closed fracture in left femur, spiral fracture in left tibia, closed fracture in left humerus and impacted fracture in right shoulder blade; two broken right toes, hallux and ring; four broken ribs, three right one left. Internal bleeding in multiple organs, can't identity damage."

"Valkyries Mum… copy…" Suzumiya took a painstakingly amount of time to cogitate on what Michiru reported.

"Sorry, Suzumiya, I know you're not good with injury reports…" There was little Isumi could do for her on that front, the poor girl did have both her legs amputated.

"It doesn't matter, please continue."

"We patched her up as best as we could, but she's still in mortal danger, we need to get her to proper medical care or Munakata might not make it." The desperation wasn't part of Michiru's report, she knew Suzumiya was doing her best to assist.

"Understood, next injury?"

"Asakura has a traumatic pneumothorax, her left lung was punctured by a piece of shrapnel. severe internal bleeding is observable." Another ragged breath from Suzumiya again displayed her discomfort.

"Valkyries Mum, copy. Final injury?"

"Kashiwagi is suffering from a MTBI right now, banged her head pretty hard. It's mild, she's unconscious and not fit for piloting."

"…All copy. Updating HQ, prioritizing the extraction of our wounded. Prepare for immediate transfer."

The heavy dose of nausea was settling deep in Michiru's stomach; the unnatural way Munakata's body bended when they dug her out of her cockpit, Asakura's every inhale sounded like the core of her lungs were been tore apart, and Kashiwagi's unconscious face bruised in a trail of blood.

It all happened so fast, she was completely useless in saving any of them. And wasn't their fortified suit supposed to protect its users from damages like this? Two Eishis with heavy internal lesions disagreed. However, more important than anything; the girls were still alive, that was a miracle in itself.

Every step Michiru took above the moist mud produced a foul squeak, the traction of her boots dug loosely into the dirt, forcing her to spent a bit extra strength in walking forward every time.

"Munakata… how're you doing?" But no matter how tiring it was to pace over the earth, nothing wore her down more than her subordinate's painful sight.

"Urggghh… I'll live… I think. –Urck—" Michiru dipped her head at Munakata's laboured groan, she silently praised her friend for choking back the tears and withstanding the agony.

They did what they could, which was restraining her injured limbs with a splint and tight bandages. In her case, Munakata's left arm, left leg, right shoulder, right toes and wrapping her chest as well. Of course, the necessary drugs were injected to lessen her suffering.

"Haah- Ca-captain…!" Against all odds, she was lifting her disabled right arm to grab Michiru from her improvised bed. The First Lieutenant was laid down on a rather flat stone covered by a couple of sheets, this poor bunk was the best luxury they could provide for now.

"Munakata, stop! You know you can't be moving!" Swiftly, Valkyrie's Captain stabled the pale girl by taking her trembling hand.

"Ugg- how's… Asakura and… Kashi- wagi?"

"They're definitely doing better than you. Kazama and Yoroi are tending to them, they're experts in first-aid, we'll be fine." Michiru peeked over at their other two incapacitated members, fortunately what she claimed wasn't a lie.

She didn't have time to nurture the two Valkyries who were also injured during the collapse, but the teams' medics were fast on their feet once Munakata was patched up. Lastly, Kagami and Yashiro were standing guard in case of more BETA incursion.

"Haa-haaa… Isumi… sorry for… all this."

"Just stop, talking too much isn't good with that chest of yours." Michiru held tightly, not breaking the eye-contact with her Platoon leader.

"Things are… not going too well… are they…?"

"…It'll be okay, we'll get everybody out."

"-Arr-cck— c'mon now… we both know that ain't true." Michiru chose to deny her statement any validation.

"Rest, take it easy."

"Listen… Isumi- haaah—! If you have to… just in case…" It didn't take a genius to predict what Munakata wished to say next.

"Hey, hey! Don't be talking like that to me."

"No…! Uurggn…! Promise… as a favour or something… you'll do me in."

"Munakata…"

"By your hands… a quick one." Could Michiru do it if the situation truly demanded? She wasn't confident in herself, but she probably had what it takes.

"It won't come down to that."

"Heh- it better… not." Finished in her request, Munakata released Michiru and returned to recuperating, doing her best to subside the pain.

"—Valkyries Mum to 1, the first operation report after the collapse is through. Whisky and Echo unit have taken major casualty following the wake of the earthquake, both teams are at fifty-four percent and sixty-one percent respectively." When Suzumiya re-joined the comms, she brought no good news along.

"What!? How can an earthquake do so much damage!?"

"…The fact is, after the initial shock many units tried to fly up to avoid getting caught in the earth… only to be shot down by groups of Laser-class." Michiru blanked out trying to accept the reality. How bad was their karma? How could all this be happening at once?

"Laser-class from where?!"

"The earthquake displaced many of Sadogashima's terrain, additional BETA forces poured out from almost all of the opening above and below ground. The estimated count is around ninety thousand, including high amount of Laser-class and Fort-class."

"That's…! What the actual fuck…"

"Furthermore, we're unable to connect to the rest of Valkyries and Archangel Fireteam. XO Kouzuki will now brief you on the constructed countermeasure."

"Hold on! What about our—!"

"—I know your people're down, Isumi. But we're simply too tight on time and resources right now. As in every second we waste is a second the 00 unit is in danger." Her complaint was interrupted by the Professor herself.

"Ma'am…" Infrequently was Michiru ever disrespectful to the genius scientist, however their interval waited for no man.

"Can you move them? Anything to transport your incapacitated members?"

"Negative! While Kashiwagi can be put in an autopilot TSF, Asakura's wound isn't treated to be TSF suitable! Also there's no way we can move Munakata without a heli or land vehicle!" Their position was looking desperate if Michiru were to be honest.

"…Then there's no way, huh. It's not happening in that case."

"Ma'am… what do you—" Michiru didn't want to put her mind to it, she wanted to not interpret the XO's point as she interrupted her.

"-Normally I would call to initiate Plan G right away, which is to self-destruct the XG-70 and extract the 00 unit. Although looking at this situation, that might be more difficult than calculated. Isumi, I need your team to rendezvous with the Susanoo below ground, and hopefully Shirogane's group as well."

"But ma'am! We're in no condition to operate! We have six TSFs and five Eishis with two immobile and one unconscious!" Generally the Valkyries were supposed to achieve whatever task the Professor ordered, but not this time when they were purely incapable of realizing that goal.

"That's enough, is it not?" It was ridiculous, Michiru didn't even consider that option.

"Ma'am…! I can't just… leave my people behind! Please! I need to get them out of here! Is there any other way!?" XO Kouzuki lurched backwards, almost like she was struck by scepticism.

If it was the old Michiru who went by the books perfectly all the time, she might be okay with abandoning her soldiers. However, after the talk she had with Shirogane, there existed a dim spark in her heart to possibly deliver a faultless win. To maybe go home with everyone smiling by her side.

After all, she too, wanted to forget the pain of losing any more of her fellow Eishis, her friends.

"Isumi… tell me one thing, okay? Does it look like to you- that I was on the off-chance- fucking negotiating with you?!" Completely caught by surprise, Michiru's mouth hung open as she failed to react intelligently to anything for a period.

"Ah…" The professor raised her hand posthaste, almost as if she was reaching out for the words she unleashed only to pause a second later with a drained sigh.

"Sorry, didn't mean that. Nevertheless, the answer is no. Like I said, we have neither the time nor the resources to extract your team members, the recovery of the 00 unit and preferably the Susanoo is absolutely priority. Not mentioning the 00 unit, losing the XG-70b is gonna hurt us a lot."

"But-…! Munakata's laying here! If we can't get her out she's gonna DIE! Asakura and Kashiwagi as well! We don't have anythin—"

"LISTEN! We. Need. The 00 unit. And since we can't confirm Shirogane's status I need your team to regain it; that is not an option, not a suggestion, it is an order, Captain." Michiru expected this, obviously the mission was paramount compared to their lives.

She knew it, A-01's duty was clear from day one. A-01's guilt was never a secret.

"XO Kouzuki! Then can you at least get another team to pick up them… or something!?"

"ISUMI! You're really starting to piss me off here! If I were to ask for 'a clusterfuck' you answer with 'how big'! This isn't baby's first rodeo, for god's sake!" Never in history had Michiru went against the Professor's instruction by such a margin, and never had she ever sought to.

"If it was Shirogane—"

"If it was Shirogane he'd have told me to fuck off and wished to his lamp genie for their wounds to be healed! He deals in the miracle shit, you do not! Just like how he and I are equals and we're not! Why is this so hard to understand!?"

Finally did Michiru's fantasy shatter, it was almost comical thinking back to it. Had she not realized the variance between her and Shirogane the day earlier? She understood this as well as the Professor, so where was the point in duplicating the action of a total lunatic if she couldn't bring the same results as the lunatic?

Michiru was no one else but herself, she could only do what she was taught to perform. A soldier's obligation plus a soldier's authority. The misery on the path she walked was immense, only because she didn't have the strength to create miracles.

"Isumi… if we have people, we would have sent them to you. And I mean that if the milk-man is off-duty he would be rushing to help you. There is simply nothing to spare for the moment, Takamura's team is furiously trying to control Echo front and the Eclipse Unit is forcefully activated to control Whiskey front."

"Is the situation… really that dire, ma'am?" Both parties calmed down and were over the phase of yelling.

"Yes, you're not in the command centre right now. You know why your position hasn't been overrun yet? That's thanks to three Squadrons throwing bodies at the BETA to stop'em from reaching you. So please, listen to my order and carry out my order, we don't need to be fucked again."

"Understood… ma'am." Before an idealist, Michiru was the Valkyries' leader. Nothing to be done, no help was coming to save the day.

"Okay, I'll make this short. I'm transmitting this special signal receiver to you through data-link, are you seeing it?" A small popup window delivered a few lines of code to Michiru's screen.

"Transmission received, this is for what, ma'am?"

"Tracking the XG-70, it runs on a specialized channel for locating the Susanoo, you should see its location now on your map. Not very accurate, but it'll have to do." Without a doubt, Michiru's atlas revealed new objects of interest.

"I see the XG-70 is somewhere on the 10th to the 12th level, underground."

"Then it's working, follow that. Once you enter the Stabs, you'll either find Shirogane and an active or inactive XG-70, or only an active or inactive XG-70, you got that? Four possibilities, nothing else."

"Yes, ma'am."

"In the state that the Susanoo is active, your mission will be to escort it to the Reactor core and protect it as it disables the Reactor. If it's not active, then either you or Shirogane will retrieve the 00 unit and then self-destruct the XG, understood?"

"Yes, ma'am." In a broad sense, Michiru could see where the Professor was going.

"Okay, right now I'll go over the process of retrieving the 00 unit. Just remember all this is considered classified intel, and don't forget anything."

"Understood."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 273 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, underground**

"—Battalion size BETA formation approaching from our two O'clock!"

"—spotted, this will be a Susanoo engagement, copy?" I said it for both Sumika and the rest to hear.

"—roger!" All the girls answered.

This was the part where Kasumi was supposed to announce the XG's movements since she had that connection with Sumika and all, so it just got weird as we sat still waiting for the big gun to fire.

About thirty seconds later, the left side railgun locked onto the bunched up BETA coming at us and shot; and then the bad dudes died, exciting stuff. I just loved how we took out every single alien we came across on our way to the Reactor, they were actually like the poor native Americans, charging against a hail of bullets from the more advanced population—

Was that- was that too much? Is there where we draw the line then?

"—Takeru-chan! You saw how I shot those guys too! Yaaay!"

"—yep, yep. They're pretty dead, how's your ammo doing?"

"Right at ninety-nine and left at ninety-eight!" We had enough rounds to fill an empty landfill, if that even makes sense.

"Errm… still can't go faster?"

"Takeru-chan, we talked about this! Maximum speed for the XG in a closed environment is sixty klicks hour!" What she meant was sixty km/h, that lazy talk was really killing me.

"You know, now I think about it. In those pre-HD GTA games, you could turn the tank cannon around and shoot backwards to go faster. Why don't we try that here?" To my proposal, Sumika retorted with an extremely disappointing stare.

"Stupidity! It's a diseaseeeeeee!

"Shut your mouth, woman! Only I can say that!" How could this dumb hoe attempt to burn me like that? Didn't she know I was literally the human torch?

"…Takeru-chan, you're worried about them, right?" Suddenly, Sumika led our conversation onto a solemn path.

"Huh- what you on about?"

"Kei-san, Chizuru-san below us and the others aboveground as well; you're thinking about them right now, I can see that." Damn her and her psychic abilities.

"Well- obviously I would be, those two bitches are probably having a laugh down there and I don't even know what Isumi's people are up to. No link to sensei means she knows nothing about how we're doing and she probably wants to blow you up or something." All in good times.

"Takeru-chan, don't you want to go to them instead?"

"A bit, yeah. But then I'll be equally worried about your dumbass. Besides, I trust Ayamine and Class rep; I've faith in them, they'll manage." For this timeline, those two were possibly the closest they had ever been in a long time. They could do it, they could overcome whatever barrier was blocking their way here.

"Thank you, Takeru-chan… for staying by my side."

"Uh-huh, you know- think of it as reward for not eating shit even though you had so many opportunities, fucking earthquake- motherfucker…" I was still very much pissed off about that.

"Ahehe, we'll be there soon, Takeru-chan! No worry, everything will be fiiiine!"

"You better be right, slut."

"OOOW! You're throwing even more insults at me than usual, Takeru-chan! And they're all for like- zero reasons!"

"Have I been doing that? Naah, you be delusional, cunt.

—

 **[REDIRECTING TO DATA ROUTER]**

 **[UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED]**

 **[VERIFICATION CODE: INTOSHADOWS]**

 **[UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS CONFIRMED]**

 **[PARTIAL AUTHENTICATION CONFIRMED]**

 **[REQUESTED DATA CLASSIFIED]**

 **[PARTIAL DECRYPTION COMPLETE]**

 **[FILE AVAILABLE FOR RE-EXAMINATION]**

—

 **The man who sold the world**

—

 **Captain Shirogane Takeru**

 **Time: [REDACTED]**

 **Location: [REDACTED]**

 **[CONFIDENTIAL DOCUMENT. EYES ON ONLY]**

"Hey, Tama, Kasumi. Wanna hear a bedtime story?" Shirogane asked his two subordinates, both were prepared to rest after a fun night of party and alcohol on the deck of **[REDACTED]**.

 **[LOCATION INFORMATION UNAVAILABLE]**

"Oh, oh! Yes I do, yes I do!"

"If you don't mind, Takeru-san." The girls were somewhat eager to be put to sleep with a tale from their favourite leader.

"Let's see… what's something scary and fun I can tell you about…?" A quiet evening was most suitable for giving two cute Eishis a quick scare, the wind blowing during this time of year created an eerie atmosphere.

 **[INCIDENT DATE UNAVAILABLE]**

"How about a monster story?" Yashiro suggested.

"EEeee! But that's scary though!"

"Perfect, let me tell you a monster story then. This one's one of my favourites." Shirogane was happy with the topic and proceed to continue.

"Do you know what lycanthrope is, Tama?"

"Aha, they're werewolves, right?" Shirogane patted the head of his cat-like girl.

"People who turns into wolves on a full moon, known for their transformation and cannibalism diet." Using uncommon words, Yashiro finished off the explanation.

"Yes… yes, that. The myth first started in Europe dating all the way back to the middle ages, the spread to other continents and religions are hard to track as time passes. Werewolves are half-human half-wolf creatures frequently told in folktale and legends." Thus, Shirogane began his story of the mythical mortals.

[ **MISSING FILES DETECTED. OMITTING DOUCMENTS]**

"So, what do you two think?" After reaching the end of his fairy-tale, Shirogane sought for the opinion of his listeners.

"…It was really miserable when she turned into werewolf, I think! Being forced to kill her friends and family just because of a curse, that's really sad!" Tama shared her view on the subject.

"But I think those who willingly turn to evil deserve no mercy. People that enjoy destruction and death with their new form are to be put down immediately." Next, Yashiro had the sense to be ruthless against criminals.

"Still, it must be really terrible to have someone close change into a monster! I don't think I can deal with anything like that." The two shorties discussed politely about the creatures of night.

"Huh, well, there're many versions of the myth out there. Some people are forced, others not so much. All in all, they're just fake stories made up to scare children. Like you two, Ahahahahaha!" Laughing comically, Shirogane fooled around with his girls a little.

"Ahehehe! Takeru-san is such a strange person!"

"I think it is time for you to leave now, Takeru-san." One did not welcome his tickling as much as the other did.

"Okay, okay. I'm on my way out. Goodnight, Kasumi, Tama."

"See you, Takeru-san! Have a goodnight!"

"Night, Takeru-san."

Pecking each of the females lightly on the forehead, Shirogane flipped off the light to the girls' room before silently shutting the doors.

He was now alone in a dim-lit hallway, not a soul to be observed anywhere in his sight. The silence of night washed away any sense of urgency he had suffered to now, the weight of his duty was lifted for that brief moment of peace. But he was by his lonesome, no friends to support his burden.

"~we passed upon the stair, ~we spoke of was and when…

~although I wasn't there, ~he said I was his friend~…"

The melody of an enchanting, sweet voice drifted seamlessly through his ear canal to his eardrum. The high pitch of her voice, so seductively smooth. She was singing an old song; a song she claimed to be her favourite, a song she remembered fondly from her time.

"~which came as some surprise… ~I spoke into his eyes-

~I thought you died alone, ~A long long time ago~…"

Drowning in her attractive tune, Shirogane stood tranquilly for a long while, enjoying the serene song his new acquaintance was performing. She hid by the hallway right before him, time and time again shooting him a smug peek around the corner.

Shirogane finally walked up, his desire for a better perspective of her vocals led him to lean against the wall perpendicular to hers. They shared no acknowledgement of one another, her singing was enough for a message they desired to pass.

"~oh no… ~not me… ~we never lost control~

~you're face… ~to face~

…with the man who sold the world~!"

Eventually, like all beautiful things, her concert reached its climax. The accented English in the air ceased to exist by her last lyrics, only a calming whistle of the harmony was left to ease their mood.

"That was some nice singing, woman. You're pretty good." Shirogane spun himself around, and met the past's ghost face to face.

"Fu-fu-fu-fu… danke." Her words were few, but her mischievous grin spoke so much more.

"Do you want something?"

"Nothing in particular, huhu. Am I not welcomed, Comrade Hauptmann?"

"Haa… I didn't say that, just thought you probably have something better to do. Like remembering history." By Shirogane's mention, her bloodshot eyes lost their playful light.

"~Ara, ara… which part of amnesia do you not understand?"

"Don't go diagnosing yourself. I still don't trust you, at all."

"Fufufu, I'd have been a failure at my work if you do." Shirogane sneered away from her.

"Still, know that we want the same thing here. You want them dead, I want them dead. That's why we're cooperating. Do your part, because your age has long since passed." This time, her impish smirk was wiped off altogether.

"Ich verstehe, Hauptmann. I have your point at heart. They will pay, they will definitely pay for that they've done. That's our common objective, we both have a lust… for revenge."

"I mean… speak for yourself, I just feel a normal desire for retaliation." In light of her almost funny joke, Shirogane laughed.

"Huhuhu, a strange man you are, Comrade Hauptmann. To not display the fury within you, that's a skill."

"Humph, I'm saving up my anger, for when I put a bullet in-between their brains."

A pause appeared in their conversation, Shirogane gazed into nothingness to avoid her scarlet irises. Both soldiers used silence as a medium to contemplate their thoughts.

"I don't understand why they did what they did. There're gaps in my memory, I'll admit it; yet my hatred still burns deep within my heart, for traitors whose punishment I failed to deliver the first time." Her expression was filled by grim as those sentiments exposed themselves.

"That's right, help me help you. We all have our choices, you're on my side due to this." Shirogane spoke without connecting their glances.

"They are unforgivable, wasting the sacrifice of our Fatherland. Injudicious dreamers, ignorant to the weight of reality."

"If that's your motivation, anything works."

"I will bring down retribution upon them, for not knowing the limitation of their ideals. I vow to you, Comrade Hauptmann, as gratitude for your effort. I shall be the one to snuff it out, their last light."

—

[ **SYSTEM REBOOTED, TRANSMISSION TERMINATED]**

 **[FILE UNAVAILABLE FOR PLAYBACK]**

 **[ACCESS TERMINATED]**

—

" **The Man Who Sold the World"**

 **Written by David Bowie**

 **1982 Studio version by Midge Ure**

—

 **Author's note**

Let's see what's new… school still sucks, hate getting up at six in the morning just to deal with a shit-eating professor failing at teaching a course I won't be passing anyway… fuck.

In other news, Strike Frontier came out, that's pretty cool, I guess. Not gonna play it now since I still Kancolle, maybe in the future. The 18plus scenes are pretty niiiiiice too, I like that in a game.

Hope you people liked this chapter as well, call me for any mistakes left unchecked. And if you really don't know who the Omake is about… PM me and I'll tell you, although I literally can't make it anymore obvious to anyone who knows that media. Is not a crossover, BTW, not with another series entirely, at least.

BETA done by chad001… errrm… why do riot police like to get to work early?

To beat the crowd


	43. Missing 21 Grams IV

**Sakaki Chizuru**

 **Operation 21, 275 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, underground**

"—shit-shit motherfuckin- Tangos on my back, Ayamine!"

"—head… tilt down." She gave the simplest of orders which Chizuru obligated.

From her rear-view camera, Chizuru saw Ayamine performing a clean sweep over her hind, scrapping two Tank-class off her Mount Pylon with her rifle. Then before Ayamine was done recoiling from her maneuver, Chizuru shot out two more Tank-class trying to land on her adversary's frame.

"…You got me, right?"

"They're dead, unlike you."

"Guess that's true, good job."

"Uh-huh, we synced." Chizuru nodded sparingly to her partner.

By the skin of their teeth, the lost Element once again narrowly absconded from another deadly encounter with the ever-so unhappy monsters. However, prolonging their lives didn't make the situation any less dire, luck wouldn't be forever on their side.

Cutting valiantly across the tunnels dug by the BETA, two flashing Shiranui Seconds danced on the thin line between life and death. Any miscalculations would no doubt result in an instant and brutal death, if one were fortunate. The alternative to a swift demise was the unvarying fate of being chewed to pieces by the man-eaters.

That was not very pleasant sounding to either of the STF Eishis, a common point of bargain for them both.

Chizuru pulled and pushed her sticks in perfect tempos to avoid some additional BETA aiming to land on her TSF; if it wasn't for her slip-up last time, she would have kept a flawless record of being untouched by the falling Tanks. Now Ayamine had gotten away with that lead as well, Chizuru was just not having her day.

"There's no end to these bastards, they're literally covering every inch of the Hive walls!"

"…What's twelve inches long, stiff, and often every hard when—"

"Can you please… SHUT THE FUCK UP!" An utterly baffled Chizuru imagined that Ayamine somehow found this time appropriate for her disgusting joke.

"I mean- calm down…"

"AS I WAS SAYING! Watch out from above, Ayamine, don't let them drop on you!"

"I think… yup, Hall's opening up ahead, should give us more breathing room." Back to seriousness Ayamine went, the temporary team-leader was moderately thankful.

"There's a Shaft coming up soon, Ayamine! We'll settle this the old way then?" Now was the moment to decide again, and that choice must come down fast.

"Let's do this…"

"Ready… set…! Rock, paper, scissors— damn it!" It was all luck based, Chizuru told herself.

"Up we go…"

"We're seriously wasting time like this, Ayamine! Just listen to me and go down! We're returning back to the same level we started on at this point!" Unknown to the trolling girl, Chizuru was being sincere this time around.

"How about… no?"

"Ayamine, then let's split up. There's no point to this." Sometimes, enough was enough.

Ayamine's 94 Second stopped in its tracks, something the glasses girl didn't think would be reality, especially for someone who couldn't stand a Hive's convoluted interior for any longer.

Although she didn't bail right away at least, that was a good sign of things to come.

"Wait… what? You know we can't do that." Of course Chizuru understood the minimum allowed TSF unit was two, but there were exceptions to every rule.

"We're plainly not getting anywhere at this rate, either head up for the surface or head down for the reactor. If we stall anymore there won't even be enough fuel for us to go anywhere, let's choose once and for all, Ayamine."

"But what about…"

"There's no time. Three options; my way, your way, or our own ways. You decide."

The following glare was so sharp diamonds wouldn't stand a chance if it could shear, Chizuru gave Ayamine her real genuine look to force a outcome before it all became meaningless. The raven-haired girl struggled to repay that stare but crumpled soon after from the pressure.

"…I… don't want to die…" She repeated her deepest desire, her deepest weakness.

"I promise, you won't." Was their firm bond adequate to overcome a personal fear? In a strange way, this was the ultimate test of their unfriendly friendship.

"Okay… let's take a dive." Funny how Ayamine was never the one irresolute, it had always been either yes or no.

"Ayamine, thanks. One more thing, give me your S-11." They were almost done, Chizuru silently swore.

"What…? Why?"

"If we do end up in a pickle, and I mean a very real mess; I'll throw your bomb in whichever direction opposite to where we wanna run at, should give us time to haul ass before detonation. Let's just hope the timer on that thing isn't broken or anything." It was a feasible plan, Chizuru studied the S-11 control and radius to know her facts.

"But… why not use your own?"

"Do you really want a suicide device strapped between your legs?"

"…Unnecessarily sexual." Chizuru wasn't the one who picked where their bombs were placed.

"You know what I'm saying."

"Alright, take it off me." Again, Ayamine spared no second thought.

Accepting the orange container from Ayamine's hand, Chizuru hooked it on her broken knife sheath for carrying. It was surprisingly a good fit, she assumed a swing of the storage pod would probably deliver the bomb right to her hands. A nice emergency exploit in case she needed access to that explosive fast.

"Let's go then, find that Reactor."

"We go down, down, down. We all go down together~"

"…Aha! I understood that reference!"

"…Did you really?"

"No, absolutely not."

 **Isumi Michiru**

 **Operation 21, 277 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, A-02 collapse point**

"—in conclusion, the biggest problem you'll face is in the case that Shirogane isn't present and the XG is non-functional, then someone else will have to go with you to recover the 00 unit and input all the passwords. Let's pray that doesn't happen, yes?"

"—I hear you clearly, ma'am."

Of course Michiru knew what she must do, the manual for XG-70's external control was pretty much burned into her mind. The airlock code, the lift performance, the autopilot code, and worst-case scenario, the self-destruct code. She remembered it all.

"I won't tell you how to manage your people, Isumi. That's your duty… and your burden. I'll continue assisting you from here, the fleet will be retreating outside the tsunami range in case we do have to blow up the Susanoo, so make sure to plan enough time for everything and tell me anything, got that?"

"All copy, ma'am." Seeing this was the end of their conversation, Michiru shot XO Kouzuki a firm salute.

"And Isumi… I am sorry for asking you of this… but you know what's at stake here. Do what you have to." Before Michiru could give a hesitant reply, the channel was terminated ahead of her words.

Michiru closed her eyes, under the total blackness generated by her eyelids, she allowed her imagination to run wild; it was happy days she reminisced, how their future could turn out to be if everyone made it off this island alive. It was a pathetic dream she saw, a dream she was too weak to make true.

Shielded by a moment in her own world, Michiru wiped away a meek teardrop crawling down her cheek. She could easily throw away her live for the assignment's completion, that stayed true for her men's lives.

"—Valkyries 1 to all units, return to your TSFs, we're moving out."

"—moving out? Are we extracting from here, Captain?" Kazama asked the toughest enquiry foremost as she conveyed a relieved gratitude.

"…Negative, we're advancing into the Stab in search for the XG-70."

Speechless faces, all around her were expressions stunned beyond words. There were no arguments Michiru wanted to present in her defence, this betrayal should be hers alone to carry.

"But Captain… our wounded—"

"-Can Asakura be loaded into anyone's TSF?" She didn't permit Kazama to finish.

"…Yeah, but a TSF's movement can easily shake the shrapnel and worsen her cut! It's still stuck in her lung!" Yoroi was there to contribute a dubious response.

"That'll have to do, move her into yours or Kazama's fighter. Put Kashiwagi back in hers as well, we'll put her unit on autopilot until she wakes up." The apprehension on her Eishis' faces was steadily turning to suspicion.

"Capt. Isumi… what about Misae-san? We can't passenger her in a TSF, you know that." Their already heavy atmosphere gained even more weight as Kazama donned a humourless mien.

"Kazama… I'm really sorry for this… it's something we must do."

Michiru could hear the noise of crumbling hearts, or maybe that was the sound of destroyed friendship, she wasn't sure. What she was certain was that Kazama definitely wanted to attack her, and would have succeeded if it wasn't for her drawing first.

And now, Michiru stood perfectly still with her feature absolutely voided of any emotion. Kazama was frozen in her heated steps by the cold barrel of Michiru's pistol, the appearance she displayed was still between disturbance and horror, albeit it was rapidly favouring the latter.

"CAPT. ISUMI! How could you!?" Kazama screamed, never before had she ever showed such wide range of desires. Yoroi was dumbfounded behind her, unsure of the proper action to cease their infighting.

"Everyone… has their roles, the battlefield is just that unforgiving, you know that as well as I do, Kazama."

"BUT-but-! Why're we going down there then!? Can't we take them to safety first!?"

"There is no time, we have to finish our mission as soon as possible."

"CAPTAIN! You can't do this to her! You can't just LEAVE HER HERE!" Michiru could tell, Kazama was slowly being pushed to the edge.

"…Achieve your mission with all your might. Despair not till your last breath. Make your death count."

The Second Lieutenant was again taken back by Michiru's reminder; the Valkyries' creed, she surely didn't forget that. Along with the tear Michiru finally couldn't hold in, her subordinate's anger dissipated into the icy air.

"Captain… Isumi."

"I won't let her… be taken by their horrid claws… so this is my duty as everyone's leader… I'm so sorry, Kazama." Cocking the hammer and aiming at her real target, Michiru found her hands trembling uncontrollably at the sight of a moaning Munakata.

She would have to do it; this wasn't a choice, it was dreadfully inevitable for their circumstances. Michiru stepped in closer to Munakata, the fresh tears she cried already dried up by the sight of her handgun's irons.

"Munakata… guess you're right, huh." The prone girl said nothing back; either exhaustion from the pain or the futility of a reply was stopping her mouth.

Although she did react, so fast Michiru almost missed it. Munakata winked at her, using her left eye.

"…Sorry, it'll be quick. At this range… I won't miss." No words left to exchange, now or ever again.

"—extreme procedure is unneeded, un-recommended, unbeneficial, un-advantageous and unfriendly. Immediate reconsideration is advised."

Cutting into their brutally despairing moment, it was none other than Yashiro's deadpan voice suggesting otherwise to Michiru's deed. And with the help of Kagami's crimson Berkut, she effectively stopped their coup de grâce momentary.

"What-!? 1st Lt. Yashiro! Get out of my way or speak! What do you want!?"

"A suggestion."

"You have a better idea or something?!" Did Michiru fill her shout with a dose of sarcasm? She wasn't sure why even if she did.

"Correct, if I am allowed to speak, Captain." The statement itself had no tone whatsoever, but Michiru somehow heard confidence, perhaps because she longed for there to be still a way out.

"Go ahead."

"This Su-47 Berkut is imbedded with an Esper pod from its previous usage and has not been removed after our amalgamation, I highly suggest relocating 1st Lt. Munakata within the pod for safe relocation."

"Will that… will that work…?"

"Affirmative."

So simply came the solution to their inherently bloody dilemma, was the answer just sitting in front of Michiru's view all along? She couldn't believe it, she was so dead set on mercy killing Munakata without first seeking for anymore alternatives. How shameful had she acted before her loyal juniors?

It was still very far-away; the thought process between her and Shirogane.

"Can you actually fit her in there!?" But for the time-being, she had no reason to refuse this ray of hope.

"I am eighty-two percent sure of this transfer, please act immediately to prevent further time loss."

By her command, the Berkut kneeled down to Munakata's side, its arm stretching to the ground and forming a path between the injured and its cockpit. Nonetheless, there was one topic which caught Michiru's attention like no other, the presence of Kagami couldn't be detected within the control seat.

"Yashiro… just where is Kagami?"

"Irrelevant subject is to be ignored."

"Irrelevant!? But she's the—"

"-Irrelevant subject is to be ignored."

"No! I'm serio—"

"-Irrelevant subject is to be ignored." Michiru gave up on pursuing Kagami's whereabouts, the unmoving Yashiro could probably keep that going longer than her.

"Is it this pod in the back, Kasumi-san?" Yoroi was heading into the Berkut for an inspection of the pod.

"Yes, the buttons are to your left, look low."

"Capt. Isumi, I am highly in consent of 1st Lt. Yashiro's proposition. This should at least give her a chance… or else it's just too sad of a way to end." Kazama stepped into the setting, her calm cobalt eyes was reflecting Michiru's doubtful demeanour.

"Okay, this pod is big enough to fit 1st Lt. Munakata! We'll manage a bend recovery position!" Yoroi updated them with nothing but good news.

"Captain, will you accept?" In reality, this wasn't even up for debate.

"Yeah, let's do this."

—

"Unnrngg… that was… close, eh?"

"Seriously, stop talking. What kind of joke is it gonna be if you still die from this?" It wouldn't be funny at all.

Munakata weakly nodded to Michiru as she finalized the posture for their W.I.A, a soft smile from her was the last thing Valkyries 1 saw before shutting down the lid like how Yashiro instructed. She quietly promised herself this wouldn't be their last meeting, not for a long time.

Michiru had so many questions brewing through her brain; the strange capsule device embedded in the Su-47, the missing Kagami who supposed to have piloted the Berkut up to that point, her strange inclination of not searching for a substitute compared to putting down Munakata. It all seemed so irregular, it was all such a blur.

None of mattered for the time, Michiru must be solely focused on surviving if anybody wanted an opportunity to live on.

"—Yashiro, I closed the cover, are you sure the oxygen tube works with that?"

"—positive, oxygen is automatically inflated from tanker." If that was what she avowed.

"Good. Yoroi, Kazama, get Asakura in here too."

"—roger." Her and Shirogane's subordinate agreed simultaneously.

Michiru watched from the sideline as the two girls collaborated together to assist their third injured teammate into the Soviet weapon. Asakura barely stood her ground when she walked with both girls support her weight, her every step was tipsy and every bump on the road pained her body.

"Captain… I'm really… sorry." Through her haggard breathe caused by lung damage like Munakata, Michiru's soldier apologized to her, as the First Lieutenant.

"Take it easy, we'll get you out, no worries."

It didn't take long to fasten Asakura in the pilot seat of the Berkut, Yoroi and Kazama were done under a minute after going inside. Seeing how the preparation for departure had concluded, Yashiro remotely commanded the 47 back on its feet.

"Let's board up too, people. The sooner we find the XG, the better." Michiru was all ready to leave, she didn't want to waste a second longer.

"—Captain, additional suggestion." However, the rabbit girl wasn't done with them in the slightest.

"—what else you got in mind, Yashiro?"

"Recommend a divergent mission overview from original, goal is to minimize risk and maximize survivability." Somehow, Michiru wasn't so fast in shutting down a new offer.

"Let's hear it."

"Instead of sending the entirety of this interim Squadron into the Hive, it is more favourable for a detachment to seek medical aid for our W.I.A first. 2nd Lt. Mikoto and I will enter the Stab in search of Capt. Shirogane while your Flight can extract 1st Lt. Munakata, 2nd Lt. Asakura and 2nd Lt. Kashiwagi."

When came out of Yashiro's mouth was so typical of a strategy from someone like Shirogane, Michiru honestly couldn't deny she wasn't all to staggered by her advice. From an ideal point of view, it made most sense to split up their manpower so all objectives could be accomplished with the tiniest time loss.

"Wait a minute here, Yashiro. Are you saying we disobey the Professor's order?"

"She'll understand us." Michiru wasn't so willing to place her bet on that proclamation.

"I really don't see that happening, Yashiro. Besides, where're we gonna take them anyway?"

"A supply line from seashore to frontline is currently being reconstructed by Whiskey front. Multiple TSF Assault ships are constantly ferrying between the 2nd Fleet and Mano Bay, exact coordinates are transmitted via data-link." And Michiru saw the long string of numbers shorty after.

"…How do you even know all this?"

"Real-time satellite imagining, I have access."

"To what?"

"Classified." Again, a classic Shirogane excuse.

"Then why don't Kazama and I go under instead?"

"I have a more accurate trace on the Susanoo's position."

"What? Really!? Where is it right now?"

"Subversive stratums thirteen, Coordinates are 8, 04'21.7"N 13, 20'47.9"E. 782.65 metres below sea-level." If what Yashiro reported was true, that information was priceless in aiding their mission.

"Where did you get that number?"

"Classified." This was starting to become a trend.

"Yashiro, even if this plan gets working, you're mad if you think XO Kouzuki isn't going to court-martial us if we do this."

"She does not have to know of our deviation." To be fair, that wasn't a lie.

"And how do you say we do that?"

"We will fake our markers with scramblers and jammers from 2nd Lt. Mikoto's F-22A's stealth tech, it will appear as if we are travelling together to the nearest Hive Gate until entry."

"And what? We'll have our marker off the whole time as we try to extract them?" Michiru wasn't bothering to count how many military laws that would break.

"Yes, after which you are free to intervene in combat as you please until we resurface from underground, then it is recommended to rendezvous with the Susanoo." It was an impeccable plan Yashiro mused, Michiru must admit it sounded wonderful on paper.

"No, the risk of that is too high. I need to correct something you said, Yashiro. We don't have a Squadron, we have a large Platoon. Since Kagami's TSF is used to transport our wounded, that leaves only you, me, Yoroi and Kazama as combat-able. And having the two of you go into the Stab is an Element is too dangerous."

"Calculated jeopardy is within acceptable range. We have a 32.84% chance of death, 48.29% chance of receiving disabling damage and 74.98% chance of receiving recoverable damage. Your group have a 14.35% chance of death, 32.85% chance of receiving disabling damage and 58.36% chance of receiving recoverable damage."

"All those numbers… where're you getting them from?" By no means was Michiru disregarding the incredible feat of Yashiro's precise estimation, but she never once believed the BETA to be anything near predictable.

"TSF simulation results, current battlefield statistics, current situational statistics, projected BETA movement formation, projec—"

"Don't you hear what you're saying here? The BETA's strength is their dicey attacks, and predicting how hard and where they'll be coming from is nothing other than a joke!"

"My information is assimilated from reliable reference."

"And what reference is that?"

"Classified." The girl didn't even flinch when she metaphorically spat in Michiru's face.

"You're—! There's no way I can go along with that, Yashiro! It's completely ridiculous! I don't have time for your nonsense! The faster we carry out our mission the more likely they're to survive! I'm cutting the comms."

"Wai—" Her dull tone was instantly terminated.

"—all units, check system and prepare to move out. Formation Square-1 with Su-47 in centre. We're heading for the nearest gate by these coordinates, up and away in sixty seco—"

"—Capt. Isumi, this narrow-mindedness is extremely unwise, please immediately consider my recommendation candidly." Yashiro wasn't done with her and carried their quarrel onto the public channel. Frankly, there was only so much stress she could withstand in one day.

"1st Lt. Yashiro! That's ENOUGH! What you're suggesting here is a PIPE DREAM! You talk as if the BETA isn't even a hazard to us! This's the exact same shit Shirogane goes on about all day! HE'S NOT HERE RIGHT NOW! I can't prioritize our medevac over the success of this entire operation! OVER THE GOAL OF ALTERNATIVE IV!"

First thing Michiru noticed after coming out of her emotional burst was the stunned expressions of Kazama and Yoroi, both girls had absolutely no clue what they discussed on their own so in a way, that reaction was deemed prudent. As for Yashiro, her same old poker-face was glued on to her feature, remaining totally unfazed by Michiru's rant.

Besides, how was everyone else so proficient at delivering a miracle on demand? How could they tread on with such childlike ideals? Not even a fairy-tale was so blatant as to speak of a happy end from the beginning. Just where did they gain such confidence in victory?

Michiru wasn't ashamed to admit she viewed everything realistically, the world was made up of possibilities and consequences to her. The simple risk/reward ratio remained true in her every decision, she never strayed far from the foolproof way of solving problems.

She walked every step of her life with fail-safes in place only for the sake of reassuring her lacking assurance.

"…Weakling." Cutting her inner monologue in half, it was one term Yashiro said that triggered Michiru's memories like nothing else.

"What… did you just call me?"

"Isumi Michiru, you are weakling. I cannot assert my disappointment is equal to my surprise, I have realized my foolishness in attempting to persuade you."

"How- you… why…?"

Impossible, did someone Michiru only rated as an acquaintance called her a weakling? She truly couldn't seal the gap between her lips right now. How dare she, how dare a mere First Lieutenant accuse her of feebleness and shortcoming, how dare she be so correct.

It was coming back to her in bulks; the memories she tucked away deep in her heart were mercilessly attacking what little self-reliance she built over the years. Michiru didn't want to remember it, that weakness of hers she couldn't defeat.

The weakness that was the constant envy she suffered during her childhood from the intimacy between her sister, Yayoi and her crush, Masaki. She always came in second in comparison to her oldest sister. No matter how much effort she resolved, how many attempts she endeavoured. Michiru always was the lesser of them two. She couldn't win Masaki's affection at all, so she eventually grew to avoid trying.

"…Ah-haha-ha… you're so right, Yashiro." The girl couldn't help but laugh, why must her mask choose this time to break apart on her?

"—1st Lt. Yashiro! Apologize to the Captain! You've said too much!"

"—Kasumi-san! You can't say that kinda stuff to other people! It's very not nice!" The two Second Lieutenants came to her aid, funny how they were at odds with each other just minutes ago.

"No, no- she's totally right. Yashiro, you're the only person other than Sgt. Jinguuji to call me that, and that was during my training days in 1996. You're really good at this, what else can you say about me?" Those in her defence stopped brusquely when Michiru confessed to being incapable.

"Capt. Isumi, you place a fictional price on everything in life. You see any action and reaction in gain and loss, a very calculating perspective to live by. You do not trust other's judgement as they often escalate the worth of personal attachment to where the equation is imbalanced, the return no longer equalling the cost."

Michiru stayed quite, so did the other two Eishis listening to Yashiro's breakdown.

"Yet you are afraid of high risk high reward outcomes, not wanting to take a gamble for an extraordinary payout in fear of losing everything. Thus you use logic and regulations as a shield for yourself to circumvent such verdicts. You mourn the dead, but do not miss them; you value your friends, but do not treasure them."

A long soundless pause froze the entire atmosphere surrounding the four stranded pilots, no convenient distraction took place to derail this painstakingly jaded dialogue. The weight of Yashiro's disclosure struck Michiru in full force, but it was not her first time meeting the truth.

"Well… I can't believe it, it's the same thing. You really are amazing, Yashiro. Those are pretty much what Sgt. Jinguuji told me, the identical points she made against me being a leader. And that's why I only excelled under XO Kouzuki, because she analyzes like I do."

"In that case, please run with my plan, Captain. I used to behave that way as well, but a life in perfection isn't being alive. What is the point of striving forward if the happiness and sadness all balances out in the end." How Michiru hoped for this to be a revelation to her, discovering a new meaning to her existence surely sounded fantastic.

However, she understood those facts better than anyone. She understood them for a long time now, even before being a Captain, even before her training squad all died.

"It's not gonna work, Yashiro. There's nothing you said today I didn't always know." Michiru's determination was set, because there was never any determination on this subject.

"I am sorry. It is futile, I hereby judge you deleterious."

And as easy as that, weapons of death were drawn. Yashiro wasn't remotely close to being at top speed when she attacked, but Michiru was in no condition to retaliate. A standing boost brought the Soviet Berkut right before hers, a rotating Motor Blade was already pointed at Michiru's cockpit.

"-What're you—! 1st Lt. Yashiro Kasumi! Lower your weapon!" Kazama only reacted seconds later, her assault rifle pointing directly at the white Su-47 wasn't sufficient in fixing to their standoff.

"Hu-HUH!? K-Kasumi-san! W-what're you doing!?" Yoroi turned baffled by the sudden intensification in arms, her Raptor stood inactive as she wasn't sure who to intimidate with her guns.

"1st Lt. Yashiro Kasumi, intentional mutiny is a war-crime punishable by death." Michiru was rather composed in her circumstances, she couldn't explain it herself.

"How many loops? How many times have we failed because of you, Isumi Michiru? Your cowardice, your inability to overcome causality. We- I suffered so many timelines due to you, one who does not believe in miracles deserves no miracles."

"What're you talking about?"

"Countless death, countless repeats because you didn't believe in my master. So many pointless demises born from your incompetence, so many wasted accomplishments spawned by your timidity. Isumi Michiru, you have always been the one with the lowest causality connection amongst us."

At this moment, Michiru was completely clueless to Yashiro's absurd rambling. There was zero hints of which could lead her to a concrete decipher of the girl's meaning. She used the word twice, causality; the Captain heard it before from XO Kouzuki's mouth, but a proper explanation wasn't an add-on.

"Are you going to stab me, Yashiro? Has all our disagreement led to this?" For her part, Michiru was unjustly peaceful when the mechanical buzzing noise of a chainsaw could be heard without her earpiece.

"It is all futile, Capt. Isumi. I do not wish to slay you here, that is an inconvenience at its most definite definition. I have gone past recommending a course of action, I am now demanding your compromise."

"So you're threatening me to go with your plan? You think this'll all work out?" Intimation never worked too well against Michiru, and she wasn't letting it start now.

"Look at me. Know that I will kill you if you refuse my order, and then shortly after will be my death by the hands of 2nd Lt. Kazama. That is the outcome with least causality connection, the least positive result."

The pair of irises captured by Yashiro's camera and projected into Michiru's vision was no different from how they had always been, and that in a way was her intention. Displaying dead eyes emptied of any emotion, Yashiro's character lend itself well to an onlooker's interpretation.

"…You're that determined to risk it?" What Michiru saw right then, were without question the eyes of a murderer.

"I am."

"Why? You don't even know Munakata and the rest that well, why jeopardize so much for a better possibility of saving them?"

"Because I do not wish for anyone else to die." Her judgement, daubed so thoroughly in irony Michiru couldn't find the sense of humour to laugh.

"But killing me is okay?"

"If I must, resetting this loop is an acceptable loss." She said that locution like it had a special meaning Michiru didn't discern.

"You keep talking about this loop and that loop, normal people can't understand that! Make yourself clear, Yashiro Kasumi!"

"I have exposed too much of our confidential matter already, you need not know more."

"This's why we're going nowhere! You keep talking like ther—"

"-I hereby present you an ultimatum, Captain. Execute by the strategy I designed, or die. We either take this chance at persistence or we will all die; right here, right now." The way she put it, there wasn't so much as a Planck length of room for dispute.

"You're serious, you're absolutely serious."

"I am incapable of sarcasm."

"…Okay, just so you know; everything we say is all recorded by our TSFs. I honestly don't think anyone here is getting away with this level of insubordination, me included. I'll see this plan through with you, Yashiro Kasumi, then we can fight it out in our jail cells once we go home."

To Michiru, there was a boundary on how far she handled pressure, and this whole debacle crossed it by miles.

"Thank you for understanding, Captain."

"Yeah… although I sincerely wish we won't be sharing a cell once we head back."

 **Yashiro Kasumi**

 **Operation 21, 287 minutes in**

"—Element C, light is green, outbound."

"—Arc 6, copy. Moving on your mark, Arc 3." Mikoto replied seriously, without her usual dose of nonchalantly.

Kasumi did not stick around for even a beat after her overall strategy was given to the four members left above ground, for all the colliding opinions she held about Isumi Michiru, there were roles she had to play before a complainer.

Leaving only a trail of dust in her wake, Kasumi and Mikoto's TSFs blasted to top speed from a stationary rocket boost. She clasped her mouth a bit and tilted her head back to ease the tremendous tension applied by the speed burst. They were away, setting out to reach the lost Takeru.

"Errm, Kasumi-san? You sure we'll be fine, right?"

"Potential threat is as indicated, 32.84% chance of death, 48.29% chan—"

"Yes, I heard that already, Kasumi-san. It's just with everything suddenly going sideways, I'm not sure if we're doing what we're supposed to." Without Arc lead's guidance, it became easy to lose sight of one's objective on this chaotic battlefield.

"We have our mission, find Takeru-san and connect him to our data-link, he won't be able to speak with the Professor otherwise."

"Wait, isn't it more important to find XG first?"

"They're one and the same, Takeru-san will be by the Susanoo." Kasumi declared positively.

"You're really optimistic about the chances, Kasumi-san! I always thought you only worked from facts alone."

"Correct, I do not contain any bias in my claims. He is there, and he is with the XG." What Kasumi didn't say was that their reality would cease to exist if something went wrong with Takeru.

"Okay! I'll trust you on that, I think it's important to be cheerful about our situation. If it can get any worse, we certainly don't want it to!"

"Favourable."

"By the way, I still think we should talk about this now… just what was that about earlier?"

"Request; restate your inquiry in full context." Kasumi didn't think of herself as dense, but whatever Mikoto brought up was outside her capability to associate.

"I'm asking about the whole deal with Capt. Isumi… do you… hate her?" Kasumi pondered Mikoto's question pragmatically, there was no one fixed answer to provide.

"I do not believe her to be a profitable leader for the sake of his objective."

"His-? Takeru's-?"

"Yes." Mikoto was slow on her second question.

"What is his objective, Kasumi-san?"

"Classified." There was a notch of guilt attached to not being able to reveal the entire narrative for the petite girl.

"Huum, you always say that, Kasumi-san. Then when will it be unclassified? When'll we earn your trust?" The time traveller's constant stance was challenged by a probing stare from the team's medic.

"It's… complicated."

"You know… I'm not good with all the secrecy stuff Takeru and XO Kouzuki have to deal with all day- like, they're impressive, I know. But really, there're just a lot of things we don't know about you guys; Takeru, Sumika-san and you. It's all hush-hush so we don't find out, it kinda hurts to be doubted."

The revelation from Mikoto was no news to Kasumi, this wasn't her first time being accused of withholding information or treacherous behaviour. Although in one way or another, it saddened the esper to hide so much truth from the ears of her age-long friends.

"I'm sorry, however the likelihood of you receiving and complying to our undisclosed statistics is outside acceptable range. It is deemed unbeneficial to divulge requested knowledge."

"Can you say that in a way I can understand? I'm sure everyone just want to know the truth!"

"You can't handle the truth." Kasumi practically repelled Mikoto's curiosity. It was a fact she had to face, nothing else to it.

"…Oh. I'm starting to see why the Captain wasn't having fun talking with you, Kasumi-san. How should I say it…? You're a bit… dismissive? You don't really like talking with others, do you?"

"I dislike all individuals equally… save for a specific few." Kasumi was a fair girl, at the minimum.

"Do you like me though!? We're friends, right!?" Mikoto looked to have picked up a better mood.

"…I reserve my comment." After consideration, Kasumi decided a kind lie wasn't worth the potential fallout if exposed.

"Huuuh! Now I'm a bit upset! Seriously though, is it because I'm a… difficult person?"

"You're a kind person, Mikoto-san. Please see me as the spiteful one."

"How's that true, Kasumi-san? You're a great friend to me!" The heartfelt confession lagged Kasumi's reaction.

"I… You're a highly valuable friend to me as well, Mikoto-san. However, I am not a good person, in no form or definition. Please remember that viewing me in a merciful light is a mistake with possible fatal outcomes." She couldn't lie to one of her most beloved ally, Kasumi knew her natural instinct better than anyone else.

"Well… I think it's sad we may never get to know more about you; I like you, Kasumi-san, you're important to me." Mikoto shined a bright smile her way, hoping to melt more of Kasumi's freezing sentiments.

"And you to me as well."

"Ahaa… here's praying we all make it back in one piece! It's a bit funny how only now I'm starting to feel a sense of danger here… earlier it was all laughs and jokes and… well, the realism is kicking in… is that a right sentence?"

"You're not incorrect."

"Ahaha… we really kinda ran dry of things to talk about, eh?" For a while, there were no new topics to be brought up.

"Indeed."

"Should be just focus for now?"

"Back in it."

 **Shirogane Takeru**

 **Operation 21, 291 minutes in**

 **Sadogashima Hive, underground**

"—sensors are looking clear, think that was the last of them."

"—can confirm! The stragglers behind us have been eliminated too!" A trail of smoke was still leaking from Tama's barrel as she radioed in.

"—nice clean-ups, everyone. Should I get back to the story?"

"—yaaaay." A surge of monotone entered my ears with a crisp cut-off, although their lack of enthusiasm wasn't taken as a no.

"Alright, where was I…? Oh, right; so there I was, sitting in my wimpy-ass single engine motorboat just staring into the holes that should be this monster's eyes. Like- bloody bastard was huge; we all seen pictures of its head of whatever but let me tell you- when that fatty surfaced, the sun got covered out."

There was some interest being generated along the emotional tale of my many ventures, and it was by no means a bad legend in any sense.

"So we just looked at each other for a good minute; me, him, me, him. Until somebody got to break that damn awkward silence, so I mustered up all my courage- having not yet reached this level of badassery- I asked the thing: 'What the hell do you want?!"

I was receiving the attention I deserved now, the many sets of irises which seemed apathetic at first were unconventionally sneaking peeks my way. The girls were eager to hear my story, I was convinced of my engaging narration was capturing the concentration of many maidens.

"My introduction was probably taken as a provocation by that beast. Following an enormous howl like nothing I ever heard before, that monster swept its head down like a goddamn eagle. And in the most glorified and breathtaking voice a man could ever dream of, that thing said to me…" Pause for dramatic effect.

"-Said what? -What did it say!?" The general consensus spread amongst our band of Eishis was that my tale got enough attention to warrant a dedicated audience. These girls were legitimately impatient for me to continue.

"As it opened its curved mouth and unveiled its sharp teeth, the very first sentence my ears ever caught from its cry was: 'I-I need about tree fiddy."

"…"

…

"…"

"What's tree fiddy?"

"Three dollars and fifty cents."

"…"

Where were they making those faces?

"-AAAGHHRRRRGGGA!" A collected scream because my saga was simply too great for comment.

"And then I gave it three fifty, and it went back down again. What do you girls thi—"

"FUCK YOU! SHIROGANE! FUCK YOU!" Hayase loved it.

"You waste this much TIME and ENERGY telling a story about the Loch Ness Monster only to END IT LIKE THAT!? Capt. Shirogane! What are you EVEN DOING?!" So did Suzumiya.

"Why y'all looking at me like that!? It was Hayase who complained about being bored as all hell!" She absolutely complained like a bitch around the fourth time we used Sumika to take care of another group.

"And I told you to bring up something interesting! This's just bait!"

"Then you got hook, line and sinker-ed, woman! Come bite me!"

"What do you take me for, huh!? Think I won't jump over and slap your ass!?"

"GET SOME!"

Following our super kind and not-at-all deadly exchange of disputes, many of the pilots burst out either quiet or mild giggles.

"…Guys, to be fair, that was a pretty good anti-climax. I thought I was funny." Somebody from the Valkyries wasn't hating on me with their entire guts.

As we coasted along the dug path by the BETA, more friendly fights unfurled from my over-the-top joke. The girls were having a relaxed laugh inside our enemy's stronghold, that was a quality worthy of celebration. Albeit the dread and apprehension was probably only hidden, not erased, and the same could be said for me likewise.

How many Halls had we plunged through by now? Were we on the fifteenth or sixteenth layer? It was difficult to locate us beneath the endless bedrock, every other cave looked akin in structure. Even if the path we chose was relatively safe to travel, the stress of not knowing our destination was painful.

Nevertheless, our morale was healthy, and with the right attitude anything could be achieved— not really, but that was what my team wanted to imagine.

"—yo, Shirogane." An encrypted channel was linked to me, thankfully its caller had calmed down from her period rage.

"—Hayase."

"Thanks for that side-track, it was kinda a good story, truth be told."

"No problem, I deliver bullshit to whatever address you put down." The blue-head playfully leered.

"They should feel easier after hearing your made-up spiel, it was getting too tense otherwise."

I supposed calling our little performance staged wouldn't a bad example of the term, I agreed to acting out a fake spoof with Hayase after she deduced that our optimism was hurting a bit too fast to her liking. What was there to explain, my theatricals was just that good.

"You know, we always joke about you being a hot-headed tard and stuff but- you're actually smart and considerate, shout out to that, Hayase." I appreciated her fineness like any good buddy.

"Thanks, and you're not really a crazy asshole, just throwing that out there. Though I wouldn't consider you a saint unless you do me this one favour."

"Going for the blackmail so soon, Hayase?"

"Hey! It's not like that! I was just thinking about asking you for your control log once we get back!" What a sudden and random request.

"My precious are precious as diamonds, without them anyone can pilot like me!"

"C'mon, now. I won't take'em for free, you know?"

"How much you're willing to give?"

"About tree fiddy."

Now, it was around this time that I realized Hayase was actually seven stories tall and a crustacean from the Paleozoic era.

"Goddamn it, you Loch Ness monster! I ain't giving you no goddamn tree fiddy! Go get your own tree fiddy!" That was a wrap.

This was the true end of our drama, I looked at Hayase with goodly eyes and she stared back with the same goofy smile. It was unfortunate none of our other team members were there to enjoy the epilogue of my grand fiction.

"Ahahahahaha…! You liked that, woman?"

"~Hihihihi! So that's a thing now, huh? Nicely done, Shirogane. I really thoug—"

Her next syllable was stolen from the tip of her tongue out of the blue, Hayase's irises expanded implausibly large as if whatever content she beheld was beyond acceptance.

"Hayase…?"

"There's something… in that direction." Her indication was useless since the tip of her finger wasn't captured by the profile camera.

"What? Be specific here, mark it on your map for me to see."

"Right… I can do that." A couple of seconds later, my HUD was overlaid by Hayase's. Up ahead, there existed a fork on our route; one led downwards in a spiral formation whilst the other outwardly prolonged outside our sensors, a mysterious path, in other words.

"Whatsup? You wanna go forward instead of down?"

"It's… there's something at the end of that tunnel, I believe…"

"Huh… but that direction has a lesser chance of heading downwards compared to our preplanned course. I dunno, girl, might be wasting serious time going for that branch." For clear reasons, I was hesitant to opt for the longer way.

"But… there's just… something over there! I can't tell you why, I just know it! I recommend dispatch a detachment to probe it out, I volunteer." Extraordinarily, the fortitude reflected in Hayase's mien swayed my judgement extensively.

"Alright… I'll trust you on this one, let me call it for you."

"Thanks, and sorry if it turns up nothing." Not counting anything else happening today, having an apology from Hayase was a blue-moon event already.

"—all units, a temporary Element will be formed consist of me and Valkyries 2 to investigate a POI at the upcoming intersection. The regular until will continue along the preconceived route, no deviation in that regard. Keep comms clear and a rendezvous point will be assigned depending on the situation."

"—Arc lead, I volunteer to accompany your Element." Meiya asked for a ticket to the fun club immediately after my update.

"Negative, exclusive adventure only for us. You need to focus on vanguarding our caravan, can't have both SVs departing."

"…Understood, stay safe, lead." Hesitant, maybe; disobedient, not in the slightest.

" _Have fun, Takeru-chan! Hayase-san thinks there's something special that way, despite not knowing what it is!_ " An actual informative message from Sumika, colour me shocked.

 _Noted, don't be driving our load into a ditch or something._ I honestly couldn't come up with a better send-off than that.

" _Roger, roger!_ "

"Let's go take a look, woman." My metal hand tapped Hayase's metal shoulder as a sort of reassurance, she just looked a bit out of it recently.

"Okay, on you."

—

"—36's out! Reloading mag!"

"—don't bother! Only a dozen left, hunt'em down with swords!"

"Alrighty, sounds good! On me!"

The question challenging us wasn't how many BETA we could put down, it was how fast we were handling these fools. Fortunately, there had been some good hustle so everybody could return home in time for supper.

"Slicing'n dicing! Four dead! Damn this American CWIS is some top-shit!"

After her compliment to my halberd, Hayase further proved her point with a proficient and cool-looking spin of my blade, also accidentally splattering the stained blood all over her surroundings.

"The fuck, dude?" Including me, actually, it was almost entirely over me.

"Sorry, didn't think that one through."

"Ahaa… we really need to work on that intelligence aspect of your character, woman." I could only sigh- also slay some more BETA, but mostly sighing.

"Hehehe! Don't mind, don't mind! Three more down! We're clear here!"

A factual claim was in place as Hayase chopped the head of the last surviving Grappler-class. On that front, the girl deserved praise for outperforming me in terms of confirmed kills, even if I wasn't trying my hardest.

"Great, let's have a look here then… don't think this hall goes any further after this turn, whatever you're so interested in should be after the corner."

"Ain't that the case? What do you think'll be here?"

"I dunno, you're the one who's so stubborn to coming here." I wasn't that against her favour of a detour.

"Could it be more of those podded brains?" Her question struck a nerve.

"Actually… that might be very possible." BETA always mastered their system of planting a surprise where we least expected one.

Scanning the tunnel all around us one last time, Hayase and I were hesitant to charge straight into a section of the enemy's domain. Nonetheless, somebody had to strive for that first step, and it was looking to be her job as the leading exporter.

"Arra, shit… not this again." The inside of the BETA's hole was familiar, all too familiar.

Everywhere above us, columns of ostensibly infinite length touched the ceiling. The dim blue light emitted from the Hive's reactor never flunked in grieving me with nausea, only in the centre laid the remains of countless lives, and these one were more intact as well.

"…What …the …fuck… there're like- so many body parts left!" Hayase, to her credit remained relatively stable after witnessing such a horrid brutality.

There was no mistake, they weren't the usual brain-in-the-pod Sumika used to be. If only the surplus parts were just the spiral-cords and brains, I could laugh it off as a joke. Seeing this was a bit on the jarring side of my psychology.

There were faces, limbs, muscles and bones left attached on the technically alive bodies. Whether the decomposition was halted or never intended to finish was beyond me, however, those things were undoubtedly former humans.

"Fucking hell… this shit be like JFK all over again… what the fuck are you aliens doing…!?"

"Huh-? What're you talking about, Shirogane?"

"Oh- nah, that was my equivalent to a Nam flashback. Unrelated stuff." A loose grip on my conscious let slip an unnecessary remark.

"Whatever… so this, what should we do with this?"

"Nothing, what can you do with a pile of bodies?"

"But…! I dunno! Is there something we can do for these people!?" Was it naivety or stupidity, I couldn't tell.

"Hayase, stop. They're dead. Ain't nobody got the time to bury them all fancy-like, let's get a move on."

"Ahaa… damn it! Is there nobody I can save…!?" Her grievance was largely ignored, all of us held regrets we were incapable of reverting.

While Hayase was taking in the reality bit by bit, I had more urgent matters to attend to, one of them being discovering exactly why this cave caught her interest and how. Unless what the girl wanted to show me was this, then that was a whole other nest of troubles.

"Yo, look in that direction… you seeing what I'm seeing?" It wasn't a test finding Hayase's metaphorical gold.

Rooted onto the rocky surfaces were countless dots, flashing a wispy soft sapphire flare we didn't notice on our way in. Shining dimly like stars in the night's sky, the cherished deposit that was the lifeblood of our hated foes laid exposed to collection.

"…Is that… all G-Element?! All this!?" The walls, the ceilings; on closer inspection, even I realized the few chucks of visible sediments weren't the only goodies we found.

"Jesus, I think there's at least a hundred kilograms down here… they're scattered but everywhere, all this money! Let me tag this location the map for now, the clean-up crew can loot it after we get this Hive. Hayase, we struck real rich this time, baby! Think of all the resea—" Her response wasn't what I anticipated.

As if blankly peering into the abyss, Hayase's thousand-yard stare was stripped of any energy. The feet of her Shiranui tripped forward sluggishly, her attention was solely attracted to the pile of G-Element laying stationary in front of her. And from her gaping mouth, I could unmistakably distinguish a tiny string of drool.

"-Aaaah… haaah…" My team partner was completely unresponsive to her surroundings.

"Hey, Hayase? You okay over there?" Her out-of-line action forced me to take my own, this was starting to become unsettling.

However, Hayase had no intention of stopping her pace. She was slowly but surely inching closer and closer to the stack of alien rocks.

"Hayase! What do you think you're doing!? Get your shit together!" I got a hold of the Type-94's shoulder and pulled back her frame to face me properly, the reaction from its blitzed pilot was less than welcoming.

"No, no, stop it! Let go of me! …It's so close over there! Just let me have some more! I'm too hungry to keep going! Leave me be already!" She feebly fought back, the TSF's movements were stiff and unskilful.

"What the hell's your problem, HAYASE!? You trying to jerk me around or something!?" The moderate fright haunting my conscious was magnifying by every passing second. There was something wrong with Hayase, and I couldn't do anything to lessen her ache.

"NO! Just- please let me go! It's too much! This's just ALL TOO MUCH, TAKAYUKI!"

That wasn't my name, she didn't even shout my name.

I actually didn't realized what I was doing until much later, I seized control Hayase's TSF almost immediately and dosed her with stims injected from the fortified suit. Her response was lacking in comparison to her earlier emotions, even though she didn't put up a real fight prior to receiving the full-blunt of a hypnotic suggestion.

"…Jesus…! Hayase! You calmed down now!?" Her fervent gaze turned back to the dead vacant look from earlier, this time was due to the drugs pumped into her bloodstream.

"Ah… ah… Shirogane? -Uuuugrra… my head… it hurts… what… happened?" On the flip-side, her heart-rate and blood pressure both went normal, plus recognizing me was a cherry on top.

"Goddamn it… I can't do this, we're done here professionally, I'm locking your weapon system until we're outta this shithole. I'm not dealing with your crap." This angered me on so many levels. Not only was Hayase having a mental breakdown right in the middle of a Hive operation, I was unable to aid her recovery in any form.

"What!? No-no! You can't do that to me!"

"Oh, I so totally can do that to you, dumbass! Do you even realize what you were doing?!"

"I…! I-I saw this… this thing- it was in my head… Something was calling out to me and- and then I felt very hungry… for some reason." What she described was not in my database of experience learned from time-hopping.

"I don't know what that means and I don't like what it sounds like. Being very serious right now, Hayase; you got a problem in your head and I can't solve it right now, the Professor will hook you up once we hit home, so until then I'm locking you down."

"Grrr… alright, you made your point." There was not much room for debate in the first place.

With a few button clicks, I took over Hayase's TSF system to avoid any potential incidents in the future, the girl was obvious reluctant to hand over the freedom to one of her few joys in life, but we had to consider the bigger picture here.

"We're heading back to the main group now, follow me closely and no bullshit."

"Okay… just make sure to help me afterwards, please?" The Hayase right now was looking very so vulnerable.

"Yeah, you'll be fine, girl. I won't let anything happen to you, promise."

 **Author's note**

Wow, you thought I was dead? Well I'm dead inside so it's not that different. Spent lots time working on me other story, it's for Schwarzesmarken, you can probably find it somewhere.

A few things, the omake from last time, I thought it was smart until it wasn't anymore. The person is Beatrix, BTW, (also best girl, unless you got shit-taste) but if you don't know who that is there's really no reason to look for it. SM's over anyway. After consideration, it's pretty weird to have her in this story, so that's why I wrote another one.

Overall, omakes aren't canon, but this one definitely isn't, until I say it is.

Merry Christmas, people, it's one da— it's two days late but you'll like it anyway.

BETA done by chad001


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